An Alaskan health worker on Wednesday suffered severe allergic reactions after receiving Pfizer Inc and BioNTech's covid-19 vaccine, but her condition is stable now said the public health authorities. The adverse reactions occurred minutes after taking the Pfizer jab on Tuesday was similar to two cases reported last week in Britain.
Britain's medical regulator has said that anyone with a history of anaphylaxis, or severe allergic reactions to medicine or food, should not get the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. But the US Food and Drug Administration has stated that most Americans with allergies should be safe to get the vaccine.
The agency said only those who had earlier suffered severe allergic reactions to vaccines or ingredients present in this particular vaccine should avoid getting the shot. Lindy Jones, the Alaskan, director of the emergency department in the capital Juneau where the patient was treated, did not have a history of allergic reactions to any ingredient mentioned in the vaccine, she told the media.
The symptoms in the middle-aged patient resolved after being administered with allergy treatment epinephrine, Jones said.
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The patient was still in Juneau's Bartlett Regional Hospital and being monitored on Wednesday. Pfizer said the vaccine comes with a clear warning that appropriate medical treatment and supervision should always be readily available in case of anaphylaxis, but it would update the labelling language for the vaccine if needed.
The US approved Pfizer vaccine emergency-use authorization last week and on Monday in the United States began administration of the vaccine to its priority groups which first includes the frontline workers.