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Sweden and Denmark announced on Wednesday that they will suspend the use of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for younger age groups due to reported side effects.
Both countries highlight the rare possible side effects of the vaccine in young people, such as myocarditis and pericarditis, which cause inflammation in or around the heart, Reuters reported.
The Swedish health agency said it would stop giving the Moderna vaccine to people born in 1991 or later, while Denmark would stop using the vaccine for anyone under the age of 18.
The two countries made their decision based on data from an unpublished Nordic study yet to be reviewed by the European Medicines Agency.
“The link is particularly clear when it comes to Moderna’s Spikevax vaccine, especially after the second dose,” the Swedish health agency said regarding the risk of rare side effects.
“In preliminary data… there is a suspicion of an increased risk of heart inflammation, when vaccinated with Moderna,” said the Danish Health Authority.
Geir Bukholm, head of infection control at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, said men under 30 should use the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine rather than Moderna’s, according to Reuters.
Denmark was already using the Pfizer vaccine primarily for children under 18.
The United States has only approved the Pfizer vaccine for minors, while the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are also used for adults.
Johnson & Johnson was the only one of the three to be temporarily suspended in the United States earlier this year due to rare blood clots.
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