A higher-than-expected number of young people 16 to 24 have experienced heart inflammation after receiving their second dose of an mRNA vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday.

The CDC has recorded 275 cases of myocarditis or pericarditis, heart inflammation conditions, as of May 31, the agency reported during a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel meeting on Thursday. This was higher than expected for scientists, who estimated that the count would be in the high double digits, CNBC reported. Still, they maintained that the risk of contracting an inflammatory condition following the second shot is rare.

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“The known and potential benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the known and potential risks, including the possible risk of myocarditis or pericarditis,” CDC vaccine guidance says. “Also, most patients with myocarditis and pericarditis who received care responded well to medicine and rest and quickly felt better.”

The agency also said that there have been 475 cases in people age 30 and younger, out of the nearly 141 million people 12 and older who have been fully vaccinated.

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The health agency has been tracking cases of heart inflammation after people receive their second shots since the Israeli government reported it had found a “possible link” between the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine and hundreds of cases of myocarditis in young men age 16 to 30.

To date, nearly 52% of people 12 and older have received at least one dose. Among adults over 18 only, the total count is about 10 percentage points higher because adults have been eligible for the shots for longer than children, who were only recently granted authorization from federal regulators to get the Pfizer vaccine. Moderna, meanwhile, has requested the FDA expand its emergency use authorization to include adolescents 12 through 17. The process is expected to take about a month.

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Tags: Healthcare, News, CDC, Biden Administration, Vaccination, FDA

Original Author: Cassidy Morrison

Original Location: Heart inflammation after second COVID-19 vaccine dose more common than expected in young adults, CDC says