Michelle Johnson, a cardiologist, states that heart issues caused by the Covid-19 vaccine are incredibly rare. If they do occur, they usually go away on their own or require medication. Myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart, has been reported to be a very uncommon side effect of the Covid-19 vaccine. Some people have reported having a faster heartbeat in the days after receiving the vaccine.
This may be part of the body's normal immune response to the vaccine and is generally not a cause for concern. Studies have shown that having had a coronavirus infection is much more likely than the Covid-19 vaccine to cause heart problems, although these cardiac arrests may not be related to coronavirus infection either. Herd immunity helps protect those who can't get vaccinated, such as newborns or those who are allergic to the vaccine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that pregnant or recently pregnant women are at high risk of death or serious illness from Covid-19, including illnesses that require hospitalization, intensive care, or a ventilator or other special breathing equipment.
Herd immunity refers to the point at which enough people in society have protective antibodies against a disease, either because they have been vaccinated or infected before, making it difficult for the disease to be transmitted from one person to another. In the United Kingdom, no figures have been published on cardiac arrests in children under 18 years of age after vaccination, meaning that there has been a small number, too small to publish, or none at all. In the United Kingdom, cases of myocarditis following administration of the vaccine have been highest in the 18 to 29 age group, followed by the 30 to 39 age group. The American Heart Association has released a statement urging all people with cardiovascular risk factors to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.
Vaccine-related symptoms of myocarditis usually appear three to five days after receiving the vaccine and usually not more than a week later. Research has shown that cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and diabetes were associated with an increased risk of serious illness or death from Covid-19 in all age groups. Although some cases of myocarditis have been linked to the vaccine, in these cases the disease has generally been mild and those affected have felt better quickly after treatments and rest. Overall, rates of myocarditis and pericarditis following vaccination against Covid were not significantly different from those of other vaccines, including influenza, although rates of myocarditis or pericarditis in young men were higher with mRNA-based Covid vaccines such as Moderna or Pfizer.
Your health care team can advise you on whether it's best to get the second vaccine as soon as you're eligible (especially for people age 65 and older) or wait a full eight weeks to get the second vaccine. During a public health emergency such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may allow the use of medical products such as new vaccines that have not yet received full agency approval if they are needed to combat serious or life-threatening illnesses and there are no acceptable alternatives available. Vaccination usually temporarily increases levels of inflammation as the body generates a response to the vaccine.
