Concerns are growing among some paediatricians over the latest Covid booster vaccine. The reason: A rare side effect that causes heart inflammation, and early monitoring shows it affects young, healthy boys more often.
“I think it’s important for all patients and families to be aware of the possible side effects,” says Dr. Jennifer Li, pediatric cardiologist at Duke Health. She has seen young patients develop heart problems from Covid and the vaccines.
Still, Li supports buying the latest refresh: “Personally, I think the benefits far outweigh the risks.”
The risk that makes headlines is myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle. It is rare but appears to be more common with booster shots, particularly with the latest bivalent vaccine targeting the latest strain of the Omicron variant. The starting doses of the Covid vaccine and first booster were monovalent – containing one strain or component of the virus. The new boosters from Pfizer and Moderna are bivalent, containing two strains or components of the virus.
Li participated in a national study that compiled data on those who contracted myocarditis, or pericarditis, from the vaccine. “Most people were male, late teens, and usually got it after the second dose,” Li says of the study’s results.
WRAL Investigates found studies to support this, with one finding a disproportionate number of myocarditis cases in men, particularly adolescents. Another went a step further and said the Moderna vaccines posed the greatest risk to young men.
“I think that’s confusing for the general public,” says Dr. Paul Offit of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He has been a voting member of the FDA’s Vaccine Advisory Committee since 2017.
When asked if he would give his children the bivalent vaccine, Offit was quick to reply, “No.”
Offit points to three groups that SHOULD be getting the boosters – the elderly, those with compromised immune systems, and those with high-risk medical conditions.
“Healthy children don’t need a booster dose provided they have received either three doses of a vaccine or two doses and a natural infection,” Offit tells the families he cares for.
That’s more true for parents of boys, says Offit. “It’s still unclear why boys get myocarditis more often – mainly after the second dose, mainly within 7 days after the second dose, but that’s a fact.”
A fact Offit says parents need to consider before enrolling their child in a bivalent refresher course.
“I think if a vaccine is clearly an advantage, then it’s a risk worth taking, but if vaccines aren’t clearly an advantage, then the risk, no matter how small, or no matter how temporary or self-resolving, is , still not worth the risk,” he told WRAL Investigates.
Li’s research shows that symptoms resolve within a few days in most people with vaccine-induced myocarditis. However, full recovery can take many months. That means no physical activity at all, which is a scary proposition for parents of young people who play sports.
On the whole, however, Li believes the risks of side effects from the vaccine are still better than getting Covid. “The risks are very, very small and the benefits are much greater, so I recommend it,” she said. “If a child gets Covid, their risk of getting myocarditis is six times higher if they get Covid than if they get a second dose of the vaccine.”
Offit is not so sure this is the case for young people who have already received their starting dose plus a booster shot or a natural infection.
Both doctors agree that there is much more to learn about the long-term effects of vaccine-related myocarditis and why some people appear to be more susceptible to the risk. Several studies are currently underway. WRAL Investigates is following this and will update parents as more information becomes available.