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Showing posts from March, 2022

COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness During Pregnancy

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In an earlier study , the scientists found that though pregnant and lactating people made fewer protective antibodies after the first vaccine dose than a control group, the difference disappeared after the second dose. A new study shows that even after two or three doses, p regnant people are nearly twice as likely to get covid-19 as those who are not pregnant . The analysis, based on Epic medical records of nearly 14 million U.S. patients since coronavirus immunization became available (Jan.2021- Jan.0222), found that pregnant people who are vaccinated have the greatest risk of developing covid among a dozen medical states, including being an organ transplant recipient and having cancer.   110,000 pregnant persons included in the study were 90% more likely to have been   infected   with coronavirus than the same number of people who were not pregnant. The next-highest risk was among organ transplant recipients (80%). Patients with compromised immune systems, had 60% greater odds of c

Triple-vaccinated 79-year-old woman dies from COVID-19 less than a week after testing

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A sixth wave of COVID-19 is sweeping across  Ontario , and it's being driven by the highly transmissible  BA .2 subvariant of Omicron,  "extremely mild" for most, deadly to some. The 79-year-old Belleville resident was having cancer therapy and was aware that the epidemic put her at risk. She was triple-vaccinated, wore a mask whenever she left the house and stayed in her tight family bubble. Nonetheless, the virus found her. She died on March 22 2022 in a hospital intensive care unit, little than a week after testing positive, her body unable to recover from the COVID that had ravaged her lungs.  REFERENCES https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2022/03/28/my-mom-is-not-the-only-person-covid-has-killed-this-week-who-is-still-dying-from-the-virus-in-ontario.html https://death-obituary.com/muriel-thompson-death-muriel-thompson-died-from-covid-19-complication/

Rare Autoimmune Skin Condition after COVID-19 vaccination in the elderly

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We discuss 29 cases with a median age 82.  A   78-year-old man went to the Emergency Department at King Fahad Medical City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with numerous bullae throughout his extremities one day after receiving the second dose of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. The bullae were preceded by intense pruritus and urticated plaques. A  skin biopsy  was performed which revealed IgG (+1), IgM (+1), and C3 (+1) staining of the  basement membrane . The patient was treated with topical and systemic corticosteroids, fusidic acid  cream, and emollients after a confirmed diagnosis of bullous pemphigoid (BP) was obtained. He was hospitalized for 3 weeks as a case of severe sepsis due to a skin infection, and he was started initially on empiric antibiotics with piperacillin-tazobactam plus vancomycin that was later upgraded to  meropenem  and vancomycin based on the results of the blood and wound cultures. The patient suffered a  pulmonary embolism on the second day of hospitalization and was plac

Triple-vaccinated 40-year-old woman dies two weeks after testing positive from a fatal heart attack triggered by the virus

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Second omicron variant – called BA.2 and nicknamed the stealth variant -- appears to be more transmissible, but not necessarily deadlier. Yet, deaths continue to rise.  A 40-year-old woman who had been vaccinated twice and also received her booster tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 during the BA.2 wave.    Her preexisting conditions included  asthma and difficulty with breathing. Two weeks after testing positive for the virus she was coughing up blood and on the same day she noticed the blood she had a fatal heart attack at home which is understood to have been triggered by the virus. GoFundMe campaign by her sisters.  REFERENCES https://www.mylondon.news/news/health/triple-vaccinated-mum-40-dies-23464762 https://www.msn.com/en-gb/health/familyhealth/triple-vaccinated-mum-40-dies-of-covid-with-friends-and-family-left-to-support-young-children/ar-AAVnnJj

Immune complex vasculitis after COVID-19 vaccination with BNT162b2

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A 76-year-old Caucasian male with a history of compensated alcoholic liver cirrhosis, NYHA II heart failure, gastrectomy after gastroesophageal junction cancer and prostatectomy after prostate cancer and indwelling suprapubic catheter noticed lesions on hands and feet ~12 days after his second  mRNA-based vaccination for COVID-19 with BNT162b2. Physical examination in outpatient clinic revealed symmetric distal limb swelling, and a purpuric rash with palpable maculae on extensor and flexor parts of both hands, legs and thighs reaching up to the lower abdomen . The patient denied symptoms of fever, dyspnea, arthralgia or anuria, but he reported of melaena and diarrhea the day before. The patient had no history of allergic predispositions or systemic autoimmune diseases. He denied having started any new medication recently or any changing in alimentary habits. A fter his first vaccination with BNT162b2 6 weeks earlier, he had experienced significant vaccine related myalgia, fever (39.5 °

26 year-old male dies of myocarditis four days after receiving his third booster shot

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According to the autopsy report and death certificate obtained by  the Defender , for this 26-year-old male "post-Pfizer Covid  vaccination myocarditis has been identified to cause left ventricular dysfunction” that led to his death.  At birth, he was diagnosed with a rare type of blood vessel abnormality inside the brain called Vein of Galen Malformation. This condition could be caused by mutations in  RASA1 gene - i nvolved in numerous physiological processes such as angiogenesis, cell proliferation, and apoptosis ; regulator of immune B cells TGF-β and  EPHB4 involved in cell migration .     He had 13 brain surgeries, endless MRIs, CAT scans, angiograms, pokes, and a final radiation treatment that was a success in eliminating the  arteriovenous malformation (AVM) . He got his first and second doses of Pfizer vaccine as soon as his age group was eligible. He did not have any side effects. Almost 7 months later he received his third shot of BNT162b2 vaccine (batch FE3590).  It

Long COVID and Adverse Effects of Vaccination in a 31-year-old woman with incontinentia pigmenti

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Despite multiple publications, feverishly sprouting Long Covid clinics and  $1.15 billion in federal funding  for the National Institutes of Health to support research, there still remains a lack of comprehensive understanding and  no guidelines regarding the management of this  lingering condition. Patients with certain genetics - like inborn errors of the TLR3- and IRF7-dependent production and amplification of type I IFNs - are prone to both life-threatening COVID-19 pneumonia  and adverse reactions to some vaccines - like yellow fever virus live attenuated vaccine , due to the production of autoantibodies.  This case report describes COVID-19 infection and vaccination adverse effects in a 31-year old woman with genetic condition  Incontinentia pigmenti (IP) . This  Canadian (Caucasian) woman had a severe case of COVID-19 and was hospitalized for oxygen therapy, intravenous antibiotics, and corticosteroids.  On Day 1, she had fatigue and a sore throat. A nasopharyngeal swab on the s

Oregon's COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough report of March 17, 2022

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Oregon Health Authority  ( OHA)’s most recent update on COVID-19 breakthrough cases, released Thursday, March 17th 2022 , reported 2,532 cases of COVID-19 during the week of March 6 to March 12. Of those cases, 2,370, or 93.6%, were unvaccinated people and 945, or 37.3%, were vaccine breakthrough cases. Among the breakthrough cases, 468, or 49.5%, were fully vaccinated and boosted. The median age of the breakthrough cases during that period was 51. Seven breakthrough cases involved residents of care facilities, senior living communities or other congregate care settings. There were 43 cases in people ages 12 to 17. To date, there have been 195,600 COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough cases in Oregon. Of those cases, 45,386, or 23.2%, were fully vaccinated. The median age of all cases is 41. (it changed to 46 in April) To date, 2.5% of all vaccine breakthrough cases have been hospitalized and 0.6% have died. The median age of vaccinated people who died is 80. 578 breakthrough fatalities were

Complete AV Block in Vaccinated COVID-19 Patient

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  An 84-year-old male with a history of coronary artery disease, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia presented to an urgent care in with body aches, malaise, fatigue, and dyspnea for three days - six months after receiving second doze of Pfizer vaccine. No other infectious symptoms were endorsed. H e denied any symptoms of lightheadedness, dizziness, palpitations, orthopnea, and chest pain. At the outside facility, he was found to be bradycardic with a complete AV block. Total of atropine 1.0 mg was administered at that encounter. Afterwards, the patient went into a supraventricular tachycardia briefly with spontaneous return to a complete AV block. He was placed on transcutaneous pacing. His previously known heart rate ranged between 77 and 99 and a visit to his cardiologist a week prior reveled no abnormalities. Prior PR interval was 128. He had no history of tobacco, alcohol, or drug use. A possible culprit home medication was atenolol 50 mg daily which he reported taking as instructed

34-year old woman dies due to 'brain bleed' side effect of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine

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A 34-year-old woman began experiencing horrific headaches eight days after the dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine in March 2021. As her condition worsened, she was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead 17 hours later, on March 24, 2021. At the time of her death, there was not enough information about the relationship between the COVID-19 jab and brain bleeding.  Te cause of deaths was determined as Vaccine-Induced Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia (VITT) She was a kind, fun-loving mother of two boys who loved to dance. REFERENCES Covid: Woman died from rare vaccine side-effect - BBC News UK: COVID-19 Vaccine Caused Woman's Death, Coroner Rules (businessinsider.com)

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children after SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination

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Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and adults (MIS-A) can follow SARS-CoV-2 infection. MIS-C was primarily described for  16-20 year olds, racial/ethnic minority populations and children with comorbidities .  MIS-C and MIS-A can be also induced by  vaccination without current COVID-19 infection. In adults, many individuals who experienced it  were vaccinated 11-78 days after COVID-19-like illness . One case when a 30-year-old male was vaccinated 6 and 28 days after positive test was fatal . In children, only ~25% had COVID-19 in the past . Average age was lower than in MIS-C triggered by the virus.   Here are a few case reports.  A 12-year-old male was presented to the hospital with acute encephalopathy, headache, vomiting, diarrhea, and elevated troponin two days after the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Symptoms developed within 24 h. Brain magnetic resonance imaging revealed a cytotoxic splenial lesion of the corpus callosum (CLOCC). Three wee

Guillain-Barré syndrome after COVID-19 vaccination

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Hundreds of presumptive cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) were identified following adenovirus COVID-19 vaccines. Dozens of cases have been reported for mRNA vaccines. An 80-year-old male patient presented to emergency room with chief complaints of progressive, ascending bilateral lower extremity paresthesia, and weakness following COVID-19 (Moderna) vaccine. He received his first dose of Moderna vaccine about three months after recovery from COVID-19. Soon after vaccination he noticed bilateral lower extremity paresthesia (tingling and numbness), which was followed by progressive bilateral lower limb distal weakness, beginning at his feet and then ascending to involve his legs, knees, and hips. He was unable to maintain balance and started having multiple falls prompting him to start using a walker for ambulation. He then received the second dose of his vaccine in February 2021. The next morning, he was unable to get out of his bed due to severe bilateral lower extremity weaknes

Three times more vaccinated people died during the omicron peak than during delta’s heyday in California's Bay Area

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A Bay Area News Group analysis of state COVID-19 deaths found that from Aug. 25 to Sept. 21, the deadliest four weeks of the delta surge when the variant accounted for 98% or more of genetically sequenced cases, 2,917 unvaccinated and 533 vaccinated people died. From Jan. 14 to Feb. 10, the deadliest period of the omicron surge when the variant was 98% or more of sequenced cases, 2,999 unvaccinated and 1,767 vaccinated people died, including 436 who’d received booster shots to shore up waning vaccine protection.  State figures have consistently shown the coronavirus is deadlier with age. Of the nearly 85,000 Californians who’ve died of COVID-19, 71% were age 65 or older and 92% at were least 50. In Santa Cruz,  10 patients lost their lives to COVID-19 in the end of January and beginning of February 2022. All but one were vaccinated, and five had received booster shots. O ff the vaccinated patients who died, one was in his early 100s, three were in their 90s, two were in their 80s, thre

Hearing Loss and Tinnitus After COVID-19 Vaccination

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In a study of vaccinations in Israel , an association was found between the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine and Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSNHL) as reflected by the high ratio of observed to expected SSNHL cases.  91 cases of SSNHL were reported after the 1st dose (7 males and 10 females aged 16-44, 15 males and 8 females aged 45-64, 21 males and 30 females aged over 65 ) and 79 cases of SSNHL were reported after the 2nd dose  (10 males and 13 females aged 16-44, 8 males and 7 females aged 45-64, 30 males and 24 females aged over 65 ) , There were 170 cases total.  Overall, 2602557 Clalit Health Services members ( 46.8 ± 19.6,  51.5% female) received the first dose of the BNT162b2  mRNA COVID-19 vaccine between December 20, 2020, and  April30,2021. Of these individuals, 2441719 (age  47.3 ± 19.6 ) received the sec ond vaccine dose between January10, 2021, and April 30, 2021. The study is not giving details about these 170 cases, but here's a brief summary of cases from oth