A Food and Drug Administration official said medical providers must stay vigilant in detecting allergic reactions in those given coronavirus vaccines after several such reactions were reported.
Two Alaskan health care workers had allergic reactions to the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine this week, while other reactions to the vaccine were reported in Britain, according to the New York Times.
But Dr. Doran Fink, deputy director of the FDA’s Division of Vaccine and Related Products Applications Committee, said the fact that the reactions were quickly detected and reported is a sign that the distribution system and its safety measures are functioning properly.
“We learned of these cases through established safety surveillance systems that worked exactly designed,” Fink said at the committee’s meeting Thursday to review Moderna’s vaccine authorization application, CNN reported.
The two health care workers in Alaska have reportedly recovered, according to CNN.
“The FDA is coordinating with the CDC to further investigate the cases in the U.S. and to communicate our findings in a timely manner with vaccine providers and recipients,” Fink said, adding that FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reached out to their British counterparts for more information and counsel.
Fink said the FDA is working with Pfizer/BioNTech to provide information to vaccine recipients about possible allergic reactions and what should be done if they occur.
Plans are in the works for a similar information campaign for the Moderna vaccine once the FDA grants it emergency-use authorization, which is likely imminent.