A New Zealand woman died days after receiving a jab of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. The death is being taken as the first death linked to the vaccine occurring in the country.
Reportedly, the exact cause of the woman's death has not been determined yet and the case has been referred to the coroner, who is investigating the reason behind the death.
Woman Died Due to 'Vaccine Complication'
RNZ stated that according to the Covid-19 Vaccine Independent Safety Monitoring Board, the woman's death might have been caused by myocarditis, a rare side effect of the Pfizer vaccine.
Usually caused by a viral infection, myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart muscle, which can reduce the heart's ability to pump blood around the body and cause rapid or abnormal heart rhythms. Its symptoms include new onset chest pain, shortness of breath and an abnormal heartbeat.
"This is the first case in New Zealand where a death in the days following vaccination has been linked to the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. While the Centre for Adverse Reactions Monitoring has received other reports of deaths in someone recently vaccinated, none are considered related to vaccination," the Board said in a statement.
BBC reported that the European Medicines Agency has insisted on myocarditis being a "very rare" side effect of the Covid vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna. It also claimed that the side-effects were more common in younger men.
Risk of Myocarditis Post Vaccination is Much Lower - Expert
Stating that the side-effect was rare and it was much more common with a Covid-19 infection, Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said that the risk of myocarditis after the vaccine is much lower than the risk of myocarditis after being infected with Covid-19, reported RNZ.
"The safety profile of this vaccine is very very good," Bloomfield said while adding that if people have symptoms such as heart palpitations, shortness of breath or chest pain they should seek medical support.
New Zealand health authorities claimed that the number of new cases has fallen to 53 on Monday as compared to 83 new cases on Sunday, reported The Sydney Morning Herald.
Pfizer, which is New Zealand's primary vaccine provider, had already distributed more than 3.3 million doses of the vaccine.
