Corona virus disease-19 vaccine-associated autoimmune disorders

Abstract

Coronavirus disease is a highly infectious viral disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome virus (SARS nCoV2). It was declared a pandemic within a few months of identification of its index case. The spread of COVID-19 across the globe was rampant, overwhelming healthcare systems and crippling global economies. Since the world was caught off guard by the pandemic, vaccine programs had to be rolled out in emergency to curb its spread. Ten vaccines have been granted Emergency Use Authorization thus far. Much of the side effects we know today are post-marketing adverse effects. Most of them are mild like myalgia and injection-site reactions, but a few of them such as post-vaccination autoimmune diseases have alerted the medical community. These include vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia, autoimmune hepatitis, myocarditis, and Graves' disease. We attempt to summarize the diverse autoimmune phenomena reported after COVID-19 vaccination, with an aim to sensitize the medical community so that they can be better equipped in management when confronted with these diseases. This review by no means refutes the potential benefit of COVID-19 vaccination which has consolidated its place in preventing infections and substantially reducing severity and mortality.