Here’s why you might have some post-vaccine side effects

Dr Zaraina Solomons a specialist physician at Melomed Gatesville received the Covid-19 vaccine. Picture: Supplied.

Dr Zaraina Solomons a specialist physician at Melomed Gatesville received the Covid-19 vaccine. Picture: Supplied.

Published Mar 3, 2021

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Thousands of South African health-care workers across the country have received the Covid-19 Johnson and Johnson vaccine as part of the national vaccine roll-out.

However, some have reported side effects soon after their jab.

According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), some side effects should not be cause for concern and it is a normal sign that your body is building protection against the virus.

“It takes time for your body to build protection after any vaccination.

“Side effects should go away in a few days.

“In most cases, discomfort from fever or pain is normal.

“Contact your doctor or health-care provider if the redness or tenderness where you got the shot increases after 24 hours or if your side effects are worrying you or do not seem to be going away,” says the CDC website.

South Africa is currently rolling out the first batch of 80 000 doses to healthcare workers while the second batch of the same amount is expected to arrive over the weekend.

On Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US released a report saying the Johnson & Johnson vaccine has a 64% efficacy rate at preventing the dominant South African variant.

The FDA report revealed that headaches, fatigue and muscle pain were some of the most common side effects from J&J’s Covid-19 vaccine.

In large clinical trials among the four most used vaccines, including the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, Moderna, AstraZeneca/Oxford, and the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, most side effects have been minor.

Specialist physician at Melomed Gatesville, Zaraina Solomons, received her vaccine on Saturday and said she experienced side effects that lasted around 24 hours.

“They started roughly six hours after I received the vaccine and I had a headache myalgia, and a low-grade fever came a few hours later.

“After the 24 hours, I felt normal but had a bit of pain at the injection site.”

Solomons suggests that those who are experiencing side effects should take a paracetamol or a painkiller.

Earlier this week, a physiotherapist from KwaZulu-Natal, Sarisha Singh, detailed her experience of receiving her vaccination over a period of three days.

The evening after her shot Singh said she started to feel symptoms such as a headache and extreme fatigue.

The next day, body aches and an increasing temperature sent her home early from work.

72 hours after her vaccination, Singh said she made a full recovery and had no further symptoms.

Similarly, Dr Aneeka Domingo revealed to SA People that she was vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at Tygerberg Hospital on Monday and said experienced some side effects.

Domingo took to Instagram to share her symptoms, saying that she experienced body aches, chest pain in her back and jaw, a headache, dizziness, shivering, and night sweats.

She has since made a full recovery.

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