Those With History Of Allergies Should Not Take Pfizer's Covid-19 Vaccine, UK Cautions After 2 Reported Reactions

Barely a day after the U.K. became the first western country to begin the Covid-19 inoculation drive, a precautionary warning has been issued asking those with a history of allergies to not take the Pfizer vaccine shot. Read on.

(Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

New Delhi: The U.K.’s National Health Service has cautioned that people with a 'significant' history of allergies should not take Pfizer and BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine. This announcement came after two receivers reported reactions from the shots.  Barely a day after the U.K. became the first western country to begin the Covid-19 inoculation drive, the precautionary warning has been issued. "As is common with new vaccines the MHRA have advised on a precautionary basis that people with a significant history of allergic reactions do not receive this vaccination," Stephen Powis, national medical director for the NHS in England, said in a statement. The chief executive of the MHRA June Raine said her team witnessed two case reports of allergic reactions on Tuesday evening. They are said to have suffered an anaphylactoid reaction which tends to involve a rash, shortness of breath and a drop in blood pressure. Both staff members of the NHS are currently recovering well, the health service revealed. Pfizer and BioNTech will be supporting the investigation in this matter. Prescribing information already carries a warning advising people that those who are allergic to any ingredient should not take the vaccine. Even while studies were being carried out for the vaccine, those allergic to any of the components had been excluded from participating. "In the pivotal phase 3 clinical trial, this vaccine was generally well tolerated with no serious safety concerns reported by the independent data monitoring committee," the companies' statement read. As per experts, reactions to the jab can include fever, nausea, swelling of the arm, or in severe cases feeling generally unwell with swollen lymph node glands.

Pfizer In India

After getting emergency use authorisation for its Covid-19 vaccine in the UK and Bahrain, Pfizer India approached the Drugs Controller General of India for the same. Currently, a major concern raised by the experts is that it requires minus 70 degrees Celsius, which does not match India's cold storage facilities. Clarifying the issue, Albert Bourla, Pfizer's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), at a press conference said: "We are working on a new formulation that will be able to avoid minus 70-degree Celsius temperature and can be stored in simple refrigeration." The company is also confident about being able to distribute the product at minus 70-degree Celsius. Besides this, Bourla charted out a detailed logistical plan and tools to support vaccine storage, temperature monitoring, and transport. (With agency inputs) WATCH | Envoys from 64 nations witness vaccine capability of India