A Boston doctor has become the first known person to suffer a serious allergic reaction to the Moderna coronavirus vaccine.
Dr. Hossein Sadrzadeh, a geriatric oncologist at Boston Medical Center, said he became dizzy and felt his heart racing moments after receiving the Moderna vaccine on Thursday, according to the New York Times.
“It was the same anaphylactic reaction that I experience with shellfish,” Sadrzadeh said, adding that his tongue became numb, his blood pressure plummeted, and he developed a cold sweat.
“I don’t want anybody to go through that,” he said.
Sadrzadeh self-administered an EpiPen shot that he brought along with him and was briefly sent to the emergency room before being discharged.
Several examples of negative reactions to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine have been reported, but Sadrzadeh’s reaction marks the first time an issue with the Moderna vaccine has been widely reported.
Five healthcare workers in Alaska suffered adverse reactions to the Pfizer vaccine, and a hospital in Illinois temporarily paused the vaccine’s distribution after several healthcare workers fell ill.
In Tennessee, a healthcare worker collapsed and fainted on TV after receiving the vaccine but said it was caused by a condition that causes her to pass out when she feels pain.
Health experts have said that while allergic reactions do happen, they are extremely rare and should not deter the public from taking the vaccine.
