Updated September 12th, 2021 at 15:32 IST

Pfizer's jab puts teenage boys at risk more than COVID due to side effects, says study

Research conducted by US researchers states that boys are more likely to be taken to the hospital as a result of a rare side effect of the Pfizer vaccination.

Reported by: Rohit Ranjan
Image: AP/Unsplash | Image:self
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Research conducted by US researchers states that healthy boys are more likely to be taken to the hospital as a result of a rare side effect of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID vaccination which causes cardiac inflammation. The chances of hospitalisation after vaccination's side effects in boys are more likely than COVID hospitalisations.

According to a report published in Guardian, boys aged 12 to 15 who have no underlying medical difficulties are four to six times more likely to be admitted to the hospital with vaccine-related myocarditis, than the boys aged 12 to 15 affected with COVID.

86% of boys who were impacted required hospitalisation

The majority of children developed symptoms after receiving the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine within days of receiving the second shot, according to the Guardian. The authors stated that almost 86% of the boys who were impacted required hospitalisation. The findings appeared to explain the UK's Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation's cautious approach to teenage vaccines, according to Saul Faust, professor of pediatric immunology and infectious diseases at the University of Southampton, who was not involved in the research.

Dr. Tracy Heg of the University of California looked at adverse reactions to COVID vaccinations in US youth aged 12 to 17 during the first six months of 2021 in a new study that has yet to be peer-reviewed. They anticipate that after two shots of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, healthy boys aged 12 to 15 will get myocarditis at a rate of 162.2 cases per million, and healthy boys aged 16 to 17 will develop myocarditis at a rate of 94 cases per million. Girls had similar rates of 13.4 and 13 instances per million, respectively, according to the Guardian.

Moderna's COVID vaccination is also linked to similar occurrences

Not just Pfizer, Moderna's COVID vaccination was also linked to some similar occurrences. Furthermore, scientists must determine whether healthy 12-15-year-old males will confront a similar predicament if vaccinated. Because the vast majority of myocarditis develops after the second dose of vaccination, giving children single doses could protect them while also lowering their chance of adverse effects.

Image: AP/ Unsplash

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Published September 12th, 2021 at 15:32 IST