During the summer months, it is common for the incidence of the coronavirus to drop. Because on these dates life takes place, mainly, in the street, which reduces the crowds in closed spaces and, therefore, the chances of getting infected. But with the new variants the panorama has changed radically.
BA.4 and BA.5, the descendants of Omicron, are the most virulent discovered to date, making infection more likely in places where until recently it was very unlikely, even outdoors. These have become dominant in many of the countries of the world, also in Spain.
Numerous vaccines are currently being developed against them, including the Spanish Hipra, whose creators assure that it will be effective against the Omicron subvariants. But until they are approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), we must continue to use those that already exist and that have saved so many lives since they began to be inoculated.
What side effects do Covid vaccines have?
However, as with any medical device, vaccines have side effects. It is true that in most cases they do not go beyond the usual Headaches or general discomfort on the first day, but there are cases in which its impact can cause considerable setbacks.
In Spain, 102,480,101 doses of vaccines against Covid have been injected, corresponding to a total of 41,243,255 people who have received at least one dose, according to the latest Pharmacovigilance report released by the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Products Sanitary (AEMPS). This publication details that until July 10, 2022, there have been 75,978 notifications of adverse eventswhich would correspond to 74 cases per 100,000 doses administered.
Of this total, 13,369 were considered serious, understanding as such, any situation that requires hospitalization, gives rise to a significant disability or puts in life threatening or fatal. Thus, the AEMPS study emphasizes that the main side effect of vaccines is pyrexia (fever), which develops between 19 and 43% of those vaccinated.
16th vaccine pharmacovigilance report
The most frequently reported events continue to be fever, vaccination site pain, headache, dizziness, and myalgia https://t.co/KrBFpWhGxK
— AEMPS (@AEMPSGOB) July 27, 2022
However, the bulletin highlights that there have been other adverse consequences due to inoculation against the virus, such as anaphylaxis, tinnitus and paresthesia or hypoesthesia, especially in the doses of AstraZeneca, Janssen and Novavax.
Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction produced by the body when it comes into contact with an element that is not tolerated. Its main effects are manifested in the form of tachycardia, generalized redness and respiratory difficulties.
The tinnitus, also called tinnitus, is a persistent ringing, ringing, or whistling sound in the ears. Tinnitus, explains the health agency, is not a disease, but a symptom derived from a health problem that affects hearing or from an adverse effect of a medication.
Finally, paresthesia is a sensitivity disorder that occurs without prior stimulation, such as can be the tingle, and although it can appear in any part of the body, its main incidence is in the arms, hands, fingers, legs and feet. Hypoesthesia, on the other hand, is a decrease in skin sensitivity.