Israel’s Health Ministry said Tuesday that it had found that the small number of cases of cardiac inflammation seen mainly in young men who received the covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer in Israel were likely related to their vaccination.
Pfizer has said it has not seen a higher rate of the condition, known as myocarditis, than you would normally expect in the general population.
In Israel, 275 cases of myocarditis were reported between December 2020 and May 2021 among more than 5 million vaccinated people, the ministry said in disclosing the findings of a study it commissioned to examine the matter.
Most of the patients who experienced cardiac inflammation They did not spend more than four days in the hospital and 95% of the cases were classified as mild, according to the study, which according to the ministry was carried out by three teams of experts.
The study found that “There is a probable link between receiving the second dose (from Pfizer) of the vaccine and the occurrence of myocarditis among men ages 16 to 30, “he said in a statement.
According to the findings, such a link was seen more among men aged 16-19 years than in other age groups.
Pfizer said in a statement that it is aware of Israeli observations of myocarditis, noting that a causal link with your vaccine has not been established.
Adverse events are carefully reviewed and Pfizer meets regularly with the Department of Vaccine Safety of the Israeli Ministry of Health to review the data, he said.
Israel had postponed the possibility that its 12-15 year old population was eligible for vaccines, pending the report of the Ministry of Health. Parallel to the publication of these findings, a ministerial committee approved vaccinate adolescents, said a senior official.
“The committee gave the green light to vaccinate children ages 12-15, and this will be possible from next week “, Nachman Ash, Israel’s pandemic response coordinator, told Radio 103 FM. “The efficacy of the vaccine outweighs the risk.”
Last month, an advisory group from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended further study of the possibility of a link between myocarditis and mRNA vaccines, including those of Pfizer and Moderna Inc.
CDC’s monitoring systems they had not found more cases than would be expected in the population, But the advisory group said in a statement that members felt that health care providers they should be aware of reports of a “possible adverse event”.
Israel has been a world leader in the deployment of vaccines.
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With covid-19 infections reduced to just a handful per day and total active cases to just 340 nationwide, the economy has been fully opened, although restrictions remain for incoming tourism.
About 55% of Israel’s population has already been vaccinated. As of Tuesday, restrictions on social distancing removed and the need for special green vaccination passes to enter certain restaurants and venues.
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