I am very afraid of the long term effects of the vaccine and the uncertainty in the future gives me a lot of anxiety

Hello,

First of all I will reassure you about the long term effects of the vaccine and then I think it is important to take the time needed to answer all your questions. I have done a lot of research on these vaccines, on their efficacy, their safety and I have also administered it to more than 500 patients, so I have been able to observe clinically the impact of the vaccine

The product that is injected into your body (the mRNA in the case of Pfizer and Moderna) is eliminated from your body after a few days. Any foreign product in the body, whether it is a drug, food, vaccine or other, is eventually eliminated by the kidneys or liver. If someone takes a drug regularly every day, the drug is always present in the bloodstream (because as it is eliminated, it is re-ingested). Therefore, the concentrations in the blood plasma are stable. In this situation, the drug may have long-term effects and it is important to be aware of these before administering it to patients.

In the case of the COVID-19 vaccine, the injected product is completely rejected from the body after a few days, making it impossible for long-term effects to occur in the body. I see (probably like you) all the misinformation available on the internet or on social networks about long-term effects. It is pharmacologically impossible. It would violate all the known rules of pharmacokinetics, rules that already apply to other vaccines and therapeutic products. Furthermore, it is impossible for the mRNA strand to integrate into the human genome. I know that there is a controversy surrounding this on the web, but this information is wrong. The mRNA (even human) does not have the function to integrate into the genome.

Concerning the side effects that I have observed in practice, it follows pretty much the same line as what was reported in the studies. 90% of the patients will have pain in the arm in the first dose. about 30-40% (these are numbers based on my clinical observations) will have mild fatigue and/or headache. About 10% of the patients developed a red plaque at the injection site which could appear about 5-6 days after the injection and lasted for a few days before disappearing completely. This effect was not observed in the studies, but many of my colleagues have also observed this effect in about 10% of their patients as well. It's a benign and very temporary effect

In the second dose, there were more side effects: fatigue, headaches, numbness in the arm (usually lasts only a few hours), nausea, fever and chills. It's kind of like a bad flu, but the symptoms usually go away after 12-24 hours

I have not observed any cases of pericarditis (inflammation of the heart's lining) with the second dose. The incidence of this effect is very rare, we are talking about 0.1% (or 1 patient out of 1000). When it occurs, it is generally very benign and can be treated very well in a few days with regular anti-inflammatory drugs available in pharmacies

I hope I have been able to reassure you a little about the long-term effects. Do not hesitate to ask me other questions. I can take the time needed with you to demystify all the elements that are required.

You can take Gravol tablets to help you (1 tablet every 4-6 hours if needed). Do you have the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine? Because nausea is more common with the Pfizer vaccine

It's a pleasure and have a good day!

Jean-Sébastien Lecompte, pharmacist