Fact Check: Has Pfizer released a list of side effects for COVID vaccine?
An archived Facebook post claimed that Pfizer has released a list of side effects for COVID vaccine. The claim by the user is FALSE
Claim
In an archived Facebook post claimed that Pfizer has released a list of side effects for COVID vaccine. In a post by Courtney June is captioned as, "Karma has no expiration date. PFIZER JUST RELEASED ITS LIST OF SIDE EFFECTS OF ITS "COVID-19 VACCINE"💉 The list of some side effects of the Pfizer-Biontech Covid-19 Vaccine. 💉 Take the Ddimmer blood test to detect: Blood thrombosis, Acute kidney injury, Acute flaccid myelitis, Positive antisperm antibodies, Brainstem embolism, Brainstem thrombosis, Cardiac arrest (hundreds of cases), Heart failure, Cardiac ventricular thrombosis, Cardiogenic shock, Central nervous system vasculitis, Neonatal death, Deep vein thrombosis, Brainstem encephalitis, Hemorrhagic encephalitis, Frontal lobe epilepsy, Foaming at the mouth, Epileptic psychosis, Facial paralysis, Fetal distress syndrome, Gastrointestinal amyloidosis, Generalized tonic-clonic seizure, Hashimoto's encephalopathy, Hepatic vascular thrombosis, Herpes zoster reactivation, Hepatitis Immune-mediated, Interstitial lung disease, Jugular vein embolism, Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy, Liver damage, Low birth weight, Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, Myocarditis, Neonatal seizure, Pancreatitis, Pneumonia, Stillbirth, Tachycardia, Temporal lobe epilepsy, Testicular autoimmunity, Thrombotic stroke, Type 1 diabetes mellitus, Neonatal venous thrombosis, Vertebral artery thrombosis, Pericarditis, Sudden death.” Even after a federal pardon, he can still be charged by the "State". Idaho is filing charges against him as I'm typing this. Yup he will still be held accountable."
Fact Check
The claim by the user is FALSE. Pfizer has documented potential side effects of its COVID-19 vaccine, by regulatory authorities however, the side effects mentioned in the post by the user are not mentioned in the list.
Explanation
A claim has been circulating that Pfizer released a list of side effects in 2022. However, upon fact-checking, the Medical Dialogues Fact Check Team found that the company released a list of adverse events, not side effects.
In 2022, Pfizer submitted a report of adverse events as part of its Biological License Application (BLA) to the U.S. FDA. The report compiled data from 63 countries, including the U.S., UK, Italy, Germany, and France, and contained nine pages of “adverse events of special interest.” Pfizer clarified in the report that an accumulation of adverse event reports (AERs) does not necessarily imply causation. The reported events could be due to underlying diseases, patient history, or other medications.
Understanding the distinction between side effects and adverse events is crucial in evaluating drug safety and medical reports. A side effect is a predictable reaction associated with a drug, treatment, or medical intervention. It can range from mild to severe and is typically documented in drug information based on clinical trial observations. In contrast, an adverse event (AE) is any unintended medical occurrence that arises during the use of a drug or treatment, regardless of a direct causal link. Adverse events can be unexpected, serious, or potentially life-threatening, often necessitating medical intervention.
Hence, the claim by the user is FALSE.
Medical Dialogues Final Take
The claim that Pfizer released a "list of dangerous side effects" is FALSE. The list circulating online includes reported events, not confirmed side effects.The overall safety profile of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine remains strong, with benefits outweighing risks.
Hence, the claim by the user is FALSE.
