COVID 19 and vaccine safety

Abstract

Introduction and objective: COVID-19 disease, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has been recognised as a pandemic by WHO since 11 March 2020. It has been estimated that the disease is responsible for the death of 3.11 million people worldwide. Although several therapeutic agents have been evaluated for the treatment of COVID-19 disease, vaccines are considered to be the safest form of protecting patients against COVID-19. Background: The aim of this review was to present the literature data and the latest recommendations on risks related with COVID-19 vaccines. The latest literature was reviewed based on PubMed and Google Scholar databases, using the following keywords: COVID-19; vaccines; safety Abbreviated description of the state of knowledge: The safety of each vaccine is vital for controllling the pandemic. Due to the fact that vaccines have been launched quite recently and their production technologies are different, the safety of each preparation should be looked into separately. Nucleic acids do not trigger such a strong immune response on their own as viral vectors, chich is why mRNA vaccines seem to be the safest types of vaccines. In December 2020, a year after detection of the first case of by SARS-CoV-2 infection in humans, the first anti-COVID-19 vaccine became available. Conclusions: Anti-COVID-19 vaccines do not seem to cause many adverse events and side-effects, such as fever, chills, muscle pain, headache and fatigue. These are not serious and subside after taking over-the-counter pain relievers. Currently, there is no information on the safety and efficacy of vaccines in pregnant and breast-feeding women; international expert recommendations leave the decision about vaccination with the woman, who should previously consult with her doctor about the benefits and risks involved.