From the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic, the social media witnessed anti-vaxxers spreading misinformation. The more scientists try to convince these people about the efficacy of a vaccine, the more they bring new claims to damage the public trust in vaccines. This time their target is the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The anti-vaxxers have begun using an image belonging to a Texas-based Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine trial participant to spread fake news and trigger fear about the vaccine.
Patricia Chandler developed sores on her foot shortly after she participated in the trial. One day after taking a walk, she experienced pain in her left foot and then found a huge blister, filled with pus. Chandler went to see a doctor for finding out the cause, while some suggested that it could be due to a bad reaction to a medication. But the cause was not confirmed by her doctor.
Fake News
Chandler's cousin Rebecca Moore launched a GoFundMe page to help the woman pay medical bills. He then posted horrific images of her feet on the page and some anti-vaxxers immediately noticed it. Now they are trying to convince people that these blisters are linked to Chandler's participation in the vaccine trial.
One person wrote: "Supposedly this is a [vaccine] trial participant. Ready to roll up your sleeve?", while another said, "See they are trying to deliberately hurt us with the vaccine." But as reported by BBC, Chandler said she did not receive a vaccine but a placebo during the Pfizer trial.
However, doctors have confirmed that a placebo or the injection of salt and water solution in the arm would not cause blisters on the feet. She also told BBC that her injury has nothing to do with the COVID-19 vaccine. "The fact that these anti-vaxxers are using this to fuel their agenda is infuriating," Chandler added.
Pfizer Vaccine Warning
Regulators in the UK, where authorities began a mass vaccination program this week, said that people with a history of significant allergic reactions should not have the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 jab after NHS workers who received the vaccine had allergic reactions.
The advice applied to those people who have a history of an allergic reaction to medications, food, and vaccines, said the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which approved the vaccine in the UK. Both the NHS workers had received the required treatment and as per the recent reports, they are fine now.
In the US, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also recently announced that the vaccine is safe. Pfizer earlier stated that according to the trial results no harmful side effects were noticed in trial participants, expect some side effects similar to COVID-19 symptoms, like muscle pain and headaches.
