FOURTH site halts J&J vaccinations within three days: Georgia clinic pauses shots over eight 'adverse reactions' after similar holds in Colorado, Iowa and North Carolina
Yet another clinic has paused vaccinations with Johnson & Johnson's shot after eight people suffered 'adverse reactions' at the Cummings, Georgia site.
Officials did not specify what types of reactions the eight people had to the shot, but said they were 'consistent with common reactions in adults being vaccinated with any vaccine,' and cited the number of cases as the trigger for the pause.
However, the eight people who had reactions were among 425 people who got the J&J shot at that site and, ostensibly, did not have any noticeable reactions.
The same thing has happened at clinics in three other states this week.
J&J vaccinations have now resumed at a Colorado site that reported 11 people had had bad reactions to the one-dose vaccine and two were taken to hospitals on Wednesday, as well as at a North Carolina site where 18 people had reactions. Four were taken to hospitals.
Georgia officials said in a statement that there was a similar incident in Iowa, but no details have been released there.
So far, Centers for Disease control and Preventions (CDC) staff investigating the incidents have found no issues with the batches of vaccines, suggesting the pauses are done out of extreme caution.
Eight people suffered 'adverse reactions' to Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine at the Cumming Fairgrounds in Georgia (pictured, file), which has been converted into a vaccination site
Vaccinations with Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 shot have been paused at the PNC Arena site (pictured) in Raleigh, North Carolina after 18 people had adverse reactions on Thursday. Four have been taken to area hospitals
The Georgia officials' statement suggests as much.
'Out of an abundance of caution, the Georgia Department of Health (DPH) nd the North Health District are pausing COVID vaccinations using the J&J (Janssen) vaccine at Cumming Fairgrounds site,' a statement reads.
One of the eight people was taken to a hospital for evaluation and later released.
The other seven were monitored at the vaccination site then sent home.
It remains unclear what these reactions entailed, aside from them being 'common' responses to the shot. The evaluation of the eight recipients suggests that they perhaps had more acute experiences of the usual reactions.
The most common reactions to Johnson & Johnson's shot, aside from pain at the injection site, are muscle pain, tenderness and swelling and nausea.
North Carolina officials also did not specify the reactions suffered by recipients of the J&J vaccine.
A 'Vaccines for All' event at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado, was shut down on Wednsday after 11 people suffered adverse reactions to Johnson & Johnson vaccines
Johnson & Johnson's vaccine is generally thought to have milder side effects than those made by Moderna and Pfizer, but has now been linked to a string of 'adverse reactions' in four states
Colorado officials said the 11 people there had 'reactions such as nausea and dizziness.'
Although none of the reactions were severe, they've come in a curious cluster, prompting the CDC investigations of 'lots' of the vaccine sent to the affected states.
So far, they've found nothing suspicious.
'There is no reason to believe that anything is wrong with the vaccine itself, and the individuals who have received the J&J vaccine should not be concerned.,' said Georgia health commissioner Dr Kathleen Toomey.
'We are looking into what happened and what may have caused the reactions, including the conditions at the fair grounds such as heat and the ability to keep the site cool.'
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