Arm Pain and Headache after the Biontech Vaccine – Why Side Effects Occur and How They Are Treated
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Covid-19 vaccines most commonly cause pain or tenderness at the injection site – in other words, arm pain. Headache and flu-like symptoms come next.
What are the side effects of the BioNTech vaccine?
BioNTech and other mRNA vaccines cause a wider range of symptoms, such as fever, headache, nausea and fatigue, in one in every 4 people who receive them.
However, these side effects lasted only one day on average.
These side effects were less frequent than those reported in clinical trials.
Confidence in vaccines has continued to increase since the end of last year. The most important factor is that most deaths from COVID-19 occur in unvaccinated people. The most promising feature of vaccines is their ability to prevent the disease from becoming severe.
A study called the ZOE Covid Symptom Study examined self-reported symptoms from 627,383 people during the eight days after vaccination.
About 70% of people who received the BioNTech vaccine had some reaction at the injection site, such as pain, tenderness, redness or swelling, whereas this rate is much lower for inactivated virus vaccines such as Sinovac.
There was no such difference in side effects affecting the whole body rather than just the injection site.
For example, 34% of those receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine had some “systemic” (whole-body) reactions, such as headache, fatigue or chills. For the BioNTech vaccine, this was only 14% after the first dose and 22% after the second dose.
The most common of these side effects was headache.
Biontech side effects are mild and short-lived
The study’s lead scientist, Prof Tim Spector of King’s College London, said these findings should reassure people that the aftereffects of the vaccine are “generally mild and short-lived.”
However, he noted that, as with the virus, there is a wide variety of responses to the vaccine, depending on factors including age and sex.
In the ZOE study of post-vaccination side effects, a quarter (25%) of all vaccinated people had one of these whole-body reactions, and two-thirds (66%) had a local reaction in the vaccinated arm.
Who is more likely to experience vaccine side effects?
Women, people under the age of 55 and those who had previously had a Covid infection were more likely to experience side effects.
In the final stage of the BioNTech vaccine’s clinical trials, roughly 77% of people experienced pain at the injection site, compared with just under 30% in the ZOE study, while the rates of fatigue and headache were three to five times lower.
For AstraZeneca, about half as many people had a whole-body reaction, such as fever or fatigue, as had been recorded in clinical trials.
Prof Spector said this might be because people in clinical trials were younger and healthier, or because those taking part in an experimental vaccine trial were more nervous and more likely to identify symptoms.
Ultimately, all COVID-19 vaccines approved around the world have acceptable safety, and looking at the side effect rates reported after clinical trials may ease safety concerns for people who want to be vaccinated.
How should side effects be managed? Treatment
The most common side effects of Covid vaccines are injection-site pain and headache. Pain-related side effects can be relieved with over-the-counter painkillers such as paracetamol or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Adults can take 2 tablets of 500 mg paracetamol (for example, Parol) for arm pain and headache.
Not everyone experiences side effects after COVID-19 vaccines, and the severity and variety of side effects will differ. Solutions should therefore be considered according to the individual and their symptoms. Taking simple painkillers and resting is the best solution. You should contact a healthcare facility for side effects that are unexpectedly severe and long-lasting.
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BONUS CONTENT
How do the BioNTech and Sinovac vaccines work?
BioNTech is an mRNA vaccine. Its mechanism of action is illustrated below:
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Sinovac is an inactivated virus vaccine. The mechanism of action of inactivated virus vaccines is illustrated below:
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RELATED TOPICS
- Current Covid-19 statistics for the world and Turkey
- Latest coronavirus news and scientific developments
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