In a new study from the University of Utah, researchers found most adolescents and young adults who developed a rare heart problem after being vaccinated for COVID-19 recovered soon afterward.
They used data from 26 pediatric medical centers across the United States and Canada to examine cases of suspected myocarditis – a swelling of the heart muscle – in people younger than 21.
Of the 139 people evaluated, most were hospitalized for two or three days. Less than a fifth were admitted to intensive care. None died.
These data suggest that most cases of suspected COVID-19 vaccine-related myocarditis in people younger than 21 are mild and resolve quickly.
Myocarditis is a rare but serious condition that can weaken the heart and affect its electrical system.
In June, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices reported a likely link between mRNA COVID-19 vaccinations and myocarditis, particularly in people 39 and younger.
The highest rates have been reported among adolescent and young adult males.
In the past, myocarditis has been linked to some other vaccines, most notably the one for smallpox.
Patients examined in the new study developed suspected myocarditis within one month of receiving a COVID-19 vaccination. They ranged in age from 12 to 20 years old. Two-thirds were white, and 9 out of 10 were male.
Nearly every case followed an mRNA vaccine, and 91.4% occurred after the second vaccine dose.
Symptoms – most frequently chest pain, but occasionally fever and shortness of breath – appeared, on average, two days after the vaccine was administered.
The team found in the patients who received a cardiac MRI, more than three-fourths had evidence of inflammation of or injury to the heart muscle.
In nearly 19%, a measure of the heart’s squeezing power called left ventricular function, was initially affected, but heart function returned to normal in all who came back for follow-up. No patients needed mechanical support for circulation.
The team says more studies hopefully will help to better understand how this rare complication develops and its risk factors.
The study design did not allow scientists to estimate how often people who received a vaccine developed myocarditis. Experts have repeatedly said the risk of harm from catching COVID-19 is much higher than the risk from a vaccine.
If you care about Covid, please read studies about vaccines beat natural immunity in fight against COVID-19 and findings that COVID-19 vaccines effectively prevent hospitalization in older people.
For more information about the pandemic, please see recent studies about many Americans take immune-weakening drugs that may reduce COVID vaccine effects and results showing that if you have a weakened immune system, consider 3rd COVID-19 vaccine dose.
The study is published in Circulation. One author of the study is Dr. Dongngan T. Truong.
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