25,661 vaccinees, or just 2% of total, experienced ‘adverse events’ — DOH

Public school teachers receive Sinovac jabs during a COVID-19 vaccination in Manila on April 13, at Palacio de Maynila, Roxas Boulevard. —INQUIRER/GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines — Only 2.04 percent of those vaccinated against COVID-19 in the country, or close to 26,000 individuals, have experienced adverse events following immunization (AEFI), the Department of Health (DOH) said Friday.

“As of 6PM on April 13, 2021, 2.04 percent of all those vaccinated on the same cut-off date experienced AEFIs, equating to 25,661 reported AEFIs out of 1,255,716 vacinees,” the DOH told reporters in a Viber message.

Of this figure, 2.013 percent were classified as non-serious AEFI cases, while 0.030 percent were classified as serious cases, according to the health department.

“All were given the appropriate care needed,” the DOH said.

In a press briefing on Wednesday, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said none of the serious adverse events has so far been identified to be directly caused by the vaccines.

In March, when the country was on its first days of vaccination, Vergeire said that the most common adverse effects of inoculation experienced by vaccinees were muscle pain, body ache, fever, increase in blood pressure, and rashes.

She added that among the serious adverse events experienced by few individuals are difficulty in breathing and chest pain.

Data from the National Task Force against COVID-19 as of April 13 showed that the country has already administered a total of 1,255,716 COVID-19 vaccine doses of the 3,025,600 doses so far secured by the government.

Of the administered doses, 1,093,651 were provided as the first dose, while 162,065 were given as the second shot.

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