The FDA-approved vaccine against the novel
coronavirus developed by Pfizer and BioNTech became
widely popular in Iraq. The study aims to evaluate the
incidence of vaccine adverse reactions, and severity after
first and second doses and to link some of the demographic
criteria of recipients. This study included 850 adults (16
years and older), and the sample was collected from a
randomly selected vaccination center in Baghdad, Iraq for
the period January to March 2022. Study Participants were
directly interviewed while taking the first dose. Later on,
phone calls were used to monitor participants’
self-reported local or systemic adverse reactions for one
week after the first dose and second dose. The participants’
age range was (19-76 years) with a mean of (46.2 ± 15.8)
years. 59.9% were males. The mean body mass index (BMI)
was (27.7 ±2.9). The incidence of vaccine adverse
reactions after first and second doses were: first dose (local
17%, systemic 27%), second dose (local 27%, systemic
35%). Ordinal logistic regression analysis after adjusting
for age, sex, and past medical history (PMHx) showed a
higher incidence and severity in females and those with
PMHx in nearly all the types of reactions except for chills
(second dose) and PMHx (two doses), muscle or joint pain
(two doses). Spearman’s Rank test showed an insignificant
correlation with any type of reaction. The vaccine is
generally safe and adverse reactions are mild and tolerable
in the majority of cases.
(FULL ARTICLE LINK) Read more ...
2023
|
|
|
