The Lareb Side Effects Center currently receives about a thousand reports a day from people who get a reaction after the booster shot. On some days, the peak of notifications is even higher, reaching around 2,500 notifications. That is considerable, but it is not yet possible to say whether that number is relatively high compared to the number of people who have had an injection.
‘This really stands out’
What can be concluded, however, is that swollen lymph nodes are reported remarkably often after receiving the booster shot. “This really stands out,” says director Agnes Kant. “We still have to process all those reports, but we certainly receive dozens of reports a day about this at the moment. It is therefore completely clear to us that this side effect is currently more important than during other vaccination rounds.”
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How that comes about is not yet entirely clear. There is a possible explanation, Kant explains. “Your immune system is really turned on with this third shot. That is of course the intention, and therefore also the name booster. But it can then happen that the immune cells in your lymph nodes also become very active, and so the lymph nodes start to swell.”
More and more difficult to swallow
That also happened to Sandra Opperman. She was vaccinated for the third time on December 20. “I was quite ill during the first two injections. Now I got a fever again, so I thought: that’s just part of it. But this time there were more side effects: it suddenly became more and more difficult for me to swallow.”
She felt her throat and noticed that her lymph nodes were enlarged. And they kept getting fatter. “That hurt terribly. I really didn’t want to swallow anymore and it felt like my throat was being squeezed.”
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Because it didn’t go away, and Sandra also had worse hearing in one ear, she went to the doctor. “Normally I don’t get scared easily, but this time I didn’t trust it. It turned out: due to the pressure on my lymph nodes, the pressure on my ear became so great that a hole formed in my eardrum. That’s why I am temporarily deaf. one ear. Very annoying, but luckily the doctor says it’s all going to be okay.”
Suddenly a bump
24-year-old Nina also suffered from her lymph nodes after her booster vaccination this week. “I was pricked on Monday morning and my neck started to hurt on Tuesday evening. I thought: what is that? Then I suddenly felt a bump and I was shocked for a while. It felt like severe muscle pain and I could hardly look over my shoulder anymore. I happened to go to the emergency room and I asked a nurse to take a look at it. Luckily it was nothing serious and it will probably go away on its own.”
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In most cases, says Agnes Kant, the side effect is not as severe as with Sandra and it is a harmless side effect that goes away on its own, like Nina. “Of course it can be very annoying. We also see reports that describe that the bump is as thick as a golf ball. But if you get this thickening after your vaccination, you don’t have to worry.”
Kant emphasizes that the chance is always present – however small – that it is not a side effect, but that you are suffering from something else. “So always be alert and go to the doctor if you have any doubts about your health or if it doesn’t go away.”
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