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Medicine United Kingdom

UK Warns People With Serious Allergies To Avoid Pfizer Vaccine (reuters.com) 175

Britain's medicine regulator warned people with significant allergies not to get Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine after two people suffered adverse reactions, but was set to give more detailed guidance on Wednesday based on reviews of those cases. Reuters reports: Starting with the elderly and frontline workers, Britain began mass vaccinating its population on Tuesday, part of a global drive that poses one of the biggest logistical challenges in peacetime history. National Health Service medical director Stephen Powis said the advice had been changed as a precaution after two NHS workers reported anaphylactoid reactions from the vaccine. "Two people with a history of significant allergic reactions responded adversely yesterday," Powis said. "Both are recovering well."

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) initially advised anyone with "a history of a significant allergic reaction to a vaccine, medicine or food" to avoid taking the vaccine. However, by the end of Wednesday that guidance was set to be refined after discussions with experts on the nature of the reactions. "We're tweaking advice to make it very clear that if you've got a food allergy, you're not more at risk," Imperial College London's Paul Turner, an expert in allergy and immunology who has been advising the MHRA on their revised guidance, told Reuters. Pfizer and BioNTech said they were supporting the MHRA's investigation.
In other vaccine-related news, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the EU regulatory body in charge of approving COVID-19 vaccines, said today it was the victim of a cyberattack.
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UK Warns People With Serious Allergies To Avoid Pfizer Vaccine

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  • by algaeman ( 600564 ) on Wednesday December 09, 2020 @07:32PM (#60814038)
    This makes me think of all those pharma commercials where they say: "Do not take zazafram if you are allergic to zazafram or any of it's constituent molecules. Possible side effects are cough, eye irritation or intracranial hemorrhaging."
    • This and it always strikes me as bizarre that medication side effects often include the very affliction the consumer is trying to treat or avoid.
    • This makes me think of all those pharma commercials where they say: "Do not take zazafram if you are allergic to zazafram or any of it's constituent molecules. Possible side effects are cough, eye irritation or intracranial hemorrhaging."

      And tell your doctor if you have had an organ transplant.

      In case he did not know.

  • The strange thing is (Score:4, Interesting)

    by olsmeister ( 1488789 ) on Wednesday December 09, 2020 @07:37PM (#60814060)
    that they do not know what in the vaccine is triggering the allergic reaction. It does not have the preservative chemicals or traces of animal products that sometimes are found in more traditional vaccines.
    • by taustin ( 171655 )

      Actually, potential auto-immune reactions were not entirely unexpected with a mRNA vaccine.

    • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      It's not all that strange, there is a lot of stuff medical science still doesn't understand. Whenever I have some symptom nobody can tell me if it's auto-immune or something else, the only way to determine that is a process of elimination.

      • by Alcari ( 1017246 )
        This is why allergy testing is such an immensely long and shitty process that basically consists of "and how about this substance? and this one? and this one here?" repeated about 200 times. And when you're done, the answer isn't "you're not allergic" it's "well, if you're allergic, it's not to one of the top 200 allergens".
    • It depends on what the people were allergic to, they are not going to speculate, but you can bet your last pound it will be investigated.

  • I plan on getting the vaccine as soon as it becomes an option to me.

    But the thought of living a society where I could, at any time, be demanded to show "papers please" just to be allowed to be in a public space is deeply troubling to me, even if it is somehow temporary.

    • by phantomfive ( 622387 ) on Wednesday December 09, 2020 @08:39PM (#60814236) Journal

      In the united states, that will probably never be required. We'll just start lifting restrictions when cases go down, and who cares why. Right now the hospital in my county has no spare ICU beds, and presumably the vaccine will help with that.

      To visit foreign countries....you already need a vaccination record depending what kind of visa you're applying for. So that is not likely to change.

      • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

        by taustin ( 171655 )

        In the united states, that will probably never be required.

        By the government, perhaps. Private businesses will take whatever path they want, including requiring proof of vaccination for, say, continued employment (which is, in general, perfectly legal).

        We'll just start lifting restrictions when cases go down

        "We" are already lifting restrictions, whether the government agrees or not. People aren't going to do it much long. New York City has already had one attempted murder of a police officer enforcing the lockdown, and every new restriction in California has produced protests that openly challenge the governor's authori

        • "We" are already lifting restrictions, whether the government agrees or not.

          Uh, dude, places across the country are increasing restrictions.

          Good idea or bad, right or wrong, people aren't going to sit at home and slowly starve any more

          Seriously? Your rhetoric is dumb, it doesn't match reality. No one is sitting at home slowly starving. Pick examples that make sense in the real world.

          • by mark-t ( 151149 )

            No one is sitting at home slowly starving.

            My issue with this is not that it will block people who should rightly have access to public facilities, but that the idea that you should have to show your papers or documentation just to be "allowed" to remain in a place that was otherwise considered open to the general public is a hallmark of a society that is no longer a free one.

          • by taustin ( 171655 )

            Governors are announcing new restrictions, and people are ignoring them, and police are refusing to enforce them. Which part didn't you understand the firs time?

            • Maybe in your dumb city that is happening, I don't know. You don't seem like a particularly bright fellow, so it wouldn't surprise me if people in your city wait until the hospital is overflowing capacity to do anything.

              In my city, people are not ignoring new restrictions. Something is wrong with you.

    • Airlines, malls and other private companies are free to do this. After all if the courts say you can refuse to make a gay wedding cake you can refuse service to those who are unvaccinated.

      • That's a good one, my religion says I should only provide service to vaccinated people. The Flying Spaghetti Monster says only the vaccinated shalt receiveth the cake.

    • I plan on getting the vaccine as soon as it becomes an option to me.

      But the thought of living a society where I could, at any time, be demanded to show "papers please" just to be allowed to be in a public space is deeply troubling to me, even if it is somehow temporary.

      I'm guessing you're pretty young. Those of us who qualify as boomers or older might remember having to show vaccination records before being allowed to travel to some parts of the world.

      And it's still a requirement for some countries (such as the USA) to provide vaccination records (or qualify by age for implied immunity) before you can become a permanent resident.

      • by mark-t ( 151149 )

        Having to show vaccination records to travel is entirely different from having to show vaccination records just to be in a public space, which is what I had said.

        So yeah... nice strawman there.

        • Having to show vaccination records to travel is entirely different from having to show vaccination records just to be in a public space, which is what I had said.

          So yeah... nice strawman there.

          "Entirely different?" I hardly think so. To be in a public space, you need to travel to it. The border you need to cross could be municipal, international, or anything in between. Where the restriction is applied is a matter of jurisdiction. There is certainly no lack of precedence in human history regarding the restriction of movement to prevent the spread of disease.

          • by mark-t ( 151149 )

            Again with the strawman argument.

            To be in a public space, you need to travel to it.

            What, are there no public spaces where you live?

            The border you need to cross could be municipal, international, or anything in between

            Or the boundaries of your own property, apparently?

            Yes... requiring vaccination to travel is entirely different from needing it just to be in a public space, because nowhere does the requirement of being in a public space require traveling anywhere that is not necessarily entirely local.

            • by jabuzz ( 182671 )

              Yes there are no public spaces where I live, that would be my private space. If I want to visit a public space I would need to travel to it. Now that might be a walk down to the local library but I still have to travel.

              • by mark-t ( 151149 )
                And if you need to show "papers" just to be allowed to be outside of your own home, do you think that is a free country?
                • by imAck ( 102644 )

                  In New Mexico (USA), our Public Health Act has provisions by which the government can 'involuntarily' confine you to your home if you fail to take a state-mandated vaccine issued during an emergency health order. I'm no anti-vaxxer, but that's enough to make me think twice about living here now that one of those, 'we'll-never-need-it-so-don't-worry-about-unintended-consequences' laws passed in reaction to 9-11 could actually become a reality here.

                  Ref: https://codes.findlaw.com/nm/c... [findlaw.com]
                  Ref: https://law.jus [justia.com]

                  • by mark-t ( 151149 )
                    I'm not talking about the impact of possibly restricting the mobility of people who don't take a vaccine, I'm talking about the more far reaching privacy implications that come with possibly being required to prove to other people that you are "allowed" to be in a public place that you otherwise could have enjoyed in anonymity, even if you were doing everything right in terms of getting vaccinated appropriately.
    • Do you honestly think it would last very long? We can't even get people to card minors for alcohol, you're telling me vaccine certificates are going to be enforced for any long period?

      • by mark-t ( 151149 )
        Do you honestly think that once it was normalized, that it would actually go away in our lifetime?
    • be demanded to show "papers please" just to be allowed to be in a public space is deeply troubling to me

      It's not to me. Society is based on rules that govern protecting each other. While I don't think we'll ever get to the place where you're not allowed in a public place it would be perfectly consistent with rules that prevent you from murdering or assaulting someone or driving a vehicle in a public place, or assembling a scaffold used by others.

      Your freedom ends where... you know the quote.

      • by mark-t ( 151149 )

        While I don't think we'll ever get to the place where you're not allowed in a public place

        As this idea is already being floated in some western jurisdictions, I can't say I'm positive you're right. I hope so.

        • Not in any serious way. The only idea that is even getting a modicum of airplay is to prevent services from being rendered. I.e. not allow kids in school if they haven't been vaccinated or not provide social security to anti-vaxxers.

          I disagree with neither concept.

          • or not provide social security to anti-vaxxers.

            Ok, you got me on this one.

            WTF does an elderly person (or disabled person) not getting their Social Security payments if they don't vaccinate????

            They paid into the system, I don't believe they agreed to later stipulations requiring invasive to they body requirements...?

            Seriously, is this a typo?

            Or are you saying the govt withholds payments of all types....?

            No food stamps? No welfare...no medicaid, no medicare if you don't allow the needle stick?

    • by Xenna ( 37238 )

      Just so you realize the privileged times in which you (have) live(d)...

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Joe2020 ( 6760092 )

      But the thought of living a society where I could, at any time, be demanded to show "papers please" just to be allowed to be in a public space is deeply troubling to me, even if it is somehow temporary.

      - Get on a bus or a train and they'll ask to see your ticket.
      - Employees working at a government building need to show their papers.
      - Kids at schools get searched for weapons.
      - Passengers boarding a plane need to show papers and get their bags and body searched.

      It's truly a bad world we live in when we cannot get a free ride, we cannot govern ourselves how and whenever we want, when our kids cannot defend themselves, and I cannot fly a plane into a skyscraper any more. I, too, feel deeply troubled.

      • by mark-t ( 151149 )

        Do you need to show proof that you are allowed to be in a family friendly restaurant (if you are not consuming alchohol)? Do you need to show ID that you are permitted to swim in a pool? Do you need to show ID that you are permitted to go to a theater to watch a movie suitable for any age? Do you need to show ID to enter a best buy or Walmart? Do you need to show ID to be allowed to take a walk in the park, or even go to the beach?

        A society where it can be demanded that a person show their "papers" i

  • If the process uses mouse, Chinese hamster, or chimeric proteins in its process, a reaction to murine components is common.
    This is especially true with monoclonal antibodies (--Mabs).
    It's recommend taking Benadryl before treatment begins.
    That said, I have no idea if this applies, so nevermind.

  • For about half of my life I had no known allergies. As of January of this year I'm now up to 3 food allergies and a related/rare condition they can't figure out. So quite legitimately, I won't be in a hurry to take this vaccine.

    • by Whibla ( 210729 )

      As of January of this year I'm now up to 3 food allergies and a related/rare condition they can't figure out. So quite legitimately, I won't be in a hurry to take this vaccine.

      You might have been too drunk to read all the way down the summary, to the bit where it says "We're tweaking advice to make it very clear that if you've got a food allergy, you're not more at risk". Then again, maybe I'm being unfair, and assuming that when you say "related/rare condition" you are talking about an allergic reaction related to an as yet undetermined foodstuff, and not some completely unrelated medical condition.

  • My Mom's Chemo caused a reaction for her. She had to pre-load with antihistamines before every session. Obviously is different for every person, but for some folks it may not be a show-stopper.

    Or they'll take a different vaccine. We may end up with a half-dozen or more effective vaccines.

    p.s. One of the drugs my Mom took had a warning not to take it if you had a known allergy to hamster ovaries.

    • by Alcari ( 1017246 )

      One of the drugs my Mom took had a warning not to take it if you had a known allergy to hamster ovaries.

      That's not as absurd as it sounds. A very common cell-line for the medical research or protein production is called CHO-cells, which stands for "Chinese Hamster Ovary". They produce a lot of protein, and they're human-compatible, so it's a great option.

      Unless you're allergic of course.

    • I got the same sort of warning the first time I got the flu vaccine, they urged me to hang around for ten minutes after the injection just in case.
  • by backslashdot ( 95548 ) on Thursday December 10, 2020 @12:11AM (#60814708)

    You can bet natural nutritional supplements have all kinds of side effects too, but unlike pharmaceuticals they don't have to report them. For example many people die from eating peanuts every year (150 to 200 actually), yet you don't see warning labels and an insert when you buy peanuts. Reference: https://health.howstuffworks.c... [howstuffworks.com]

  • I have a strong aversion to dying on a ventilator. Since I never had an anaphylactic reaction before, I'm going to risk the vaccine.

  • Every deadbeat can make up a good excuse. I'm getting my shots in a week, together with influenza and pneumonia shots. I'd hate myself if I didn't go, but sat at home rambling about it.

  • I'll have it! (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Gonoff ( 88518 ) on Thursday December 10, 2020 @07:37AM (#60815302)

    I've had Covid-19 twice. The second time was a doozy! When it is available for me, I will be there.

    It is not that this came out fast, it is that it generally takes far longer than it should to bring out a new vaccine. There are delays in funding, bureaucracy, committee clearances and so on. The fact that this one didn't take that long shows what should happen...

"An idealist is one who, on noticing that a rose smells better than a cabbage, concludes that it will also make better soup." - H.L. Mencken

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