Serious adverse events of special interest following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination in randomized trials in adults – ScienceDirect

Using a prespecified list of AESI identified by the Brighton Collaboration, higher risk of serious AESI was observed in the mRNA COVID-19 vaccine group relative to placebo in both the Pfizer and Moderna adult phase III trials, with 10.1 (Pfizer) and 15.1 (Moderna) additional events for every 10,000 individuals vaccinated. Combined, there was a risk difference of 12.5 serious AESIs per 10,000 individuals vaccinated (95 % CI 2.1 to 22.9). These results raise concerns that mRNA vaccines are associated with more harm than initially estimated at the time of emergency authorization. In addition, our analysis identified a 36 % higher risk of serious adverse events in vaccinated participants in the Pfizer trial: 18.0 additional SAEs per 10,000 vaccinated (95 % CI 1.2 to 34.9). Consistent with the FDA evaluation, our analysis found no clear difference in SAEs between groups in the Moderna trial.

Rational policy formation should consider potential harms alongside potential benefits. [29] To illustrate this need in the present context, we conducted a simple harm-benefit comparison using the trial data comparing excess risk of serious AESI against reductions in COVID-19 hospitalization. We found excess risk of serious AESIs to exceed the reduction in COVID-19 hospitalizations in both Pfizer and Moderna trials.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X22010283#go_to_[%7B%22num%22:414,%22gen%22:0%7D,%7B%22name%22:%22FitR%22%7D,0,794,596,794]