On September 29, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMO) issued a statement tacitly admitting that some vaccines appear to cause myocarditis.
In his statement, CMO Kieran Moore recommended that Ontario begin issuing Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines exclusively out of “an abundance of caution” resulting from an analysis of adverse events following immunization with the various vaccines.
“This recommendation was based on the advice of Ontario’s Children COVID-19 Vaccine Table, Ontario Vaccine Clinical Advisory Group, and Public Health Ontario and is due to an observed increase in Ontario of the very rare heart condition called pericarditis/myocarditis following vaccination with Moderna compared to Pfizer in the 18 to 24 year old age group, particularly among males,” states Moore.
“The majority of reported cases have been mild with individuals recovering quickly, normally with anti-inflammatory medication. Symptoms have typically been reported to start within one week after vaccination, more commonly after the second dose.”
According to Public Health Ontario’s (PHO) data, there have been 314 documented post-vaccine cases of myocarditis or pericarditis in Ontario. Moreover, among 204 of these cases, 79.9 per cent occurred in males, and 69.6 per cent occurred in females following a second dose, suggesting that additional doses increase the likeliness of adverse reactions.
While PHO asserts that cases have been mild, myocarditis is generally considered a severe condition.
According to the Myocarditis Foundation, 8.6 per cent to 12 per cent of all sudden cardiac deaths in young adults are caused by myocarditis.
Moore also cites that while there have been reports of myocarditis/pericarditis following the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, it appears to occur more often following vaccination with Moderna.
While Moore says that this data has guided PHO’s recommendation, she also says that the availability of Pfizer vaccines — and that he does not believe that mixing vaccines will pose a problem — has guided his recommendation.
“This decision is also based on the increased and reliable supply of the Pfizer vaccines and the fact that individuals who received Moderna for their first dose can safely take the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for their second dose,” said Moore. “Mixing vaccines is safe and effective, and full vaccination with two doses of the mRNA vaccine offers the greatest protection you can have against COVID-19 and the Delta variant.”
He ended his statement by recommending that more people get vaccinated, regardless of the risks.
