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Some people who have Moderna Inc.’s vaccine experience has delayed rashes that can be four inches wide or larger and take about six days to subside, according to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The researchers reported details of 12 cases of reactions that appeared eight days or more after people received their first dose. They were usually treated with ice and antihistamines, although some patients required steroid treatment. About half also had skin reactions after the second dose, although they were less severe.
While there have been previous reports of the reactions that mainly occur with the Moderna shot, their appearance can be surprising. The the details should help educate doctors and reassure those who develop them, said Kimberly Blumenthal, senior author of the article and co-director of the Clinical Epidemiology Program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
“Our goal was to show how dramatic they can be, while at the same time no one has had it more severe with Dose 2,” she said in an email response to questions. “A lot of the patients I took care of were worried about them. Is it an infection? (No!) Does that mean I can’t take Dose 2? (No!) Will this happen with dose 2? (Not necessarily!).”
“It’s a nuisance, but it’s not dangerous,” she said in an interview.
Covid Arm
Evidence for these reactions has emerged from previous studies. Moderna’s final vaccine trial Noted delayed reactions at the site of the first injection in approximately 0.8% of the 30,420 participants and in 0.2% at their second dose. They usually resolved in about five days.
Reports of rashes after vaccines, commonly referred to as the ‘Covid arms’, began appearing in a Facebook group of pharmacists earlier this year. Pharmacists shared their experiences in the ‘Pharmacy staff for Covid-19 support’ group, posting pictures of large red circles on their arms. People asked what community members of 44,000 knew about the phenomenon and if others had seen similar effects.
Delayed reactions to the Moderna vaccine are different from the immediate injection site reactions that commonly occur with Pfizer Inc. and Moderna messenger RNA vaccines, Blumenthal said.
“This is a Moderna-specific reaction that appears after the first week and can last for several days,” she said. “I have not been informed of any from Pfizer,” she said.
It is not known exactly what causes them, but it may be some sort of immune reaction to the inactive components of the vaccine, she said.
While most of the delayed reactions developed on the shoulder and upper arm near the injection site, others developed on the elbow and fingers and palm of the hand, according to the study. In some cases, the tissue below the skin’s surface has hardened and lost its smooth appearance in response to the inflammation.
– With the help of Angelica LaVito
(Add more details on reactions throughout the story)
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