A medical worker is injected with the Covid-19 vaccine. About one third of Covid-19 vaccine recipients in Vietnam suffer from slight allergic reactions – PHOTO: MINISTRY OF HEALTH

HCMC – Vietnam has injected nearly 56,360 people in 19 cities and provinces with the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine since the vaccination campaign began one month ago, and some one third of them (33%) suffered from slight allergic reactions after the vaccination, according to the Ministry of Health.

Some of the most common reactions included soreness of muscles where the injection was given, fatigue, fever, headache, diarrhea and nausea. These symptoms disappeared one or two days after vaccination.

The ministry said these reactions are not worrisome because they are common post vaccination side effects of not only Covid-19 vaccines but also vaccines for other infectious diseases such as rubella, whooping cough and tetanus.

Besides, some 0.1% of the vaccinated suffered from serious allergic reactions. After one or two days of treatment at medical centers, they recovered and were able to return to work.

The more serious side effects such as blood clots, anaphylactoid shock and convulsion have not been reported in the country.

The figures showed that the incidence rate of allergic reactions among the vaccinated in Vietnam is relatively low compared with the data provided by the manufacturers.

More than 117,000 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine produced by British drugmaker AstraZeneca arrived in Vietnam on February 24 and the vaccination started on March 8. With the limited amount of vaccine doses, the vaccination has been prioritized for frontline health workers at Covid-19 treatment facilities and residents in Covid-19 hotspots.

Vietnam has planned to expand the vaccine eligibility to other groups of people after receiving the first Covid-19 vaccine shipment provided by the Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access (Covax) Facility early this month. The shipment contains 811,200 doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.

The Health Ministry said the vaccinated should remain at the vaccination venue for at least 30 minutes after taking the vaccine for follow-up care and immediately contact the local medical centers if they suffer from any side effects after returning home.