Assoc. Prof. Dace Zavadska: The Vaccine Might Cause Discomfort, Not Harm

Dace Zavadska’s, Infectologist and Associate Professor at the Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) Department of Paediatrics, opinion on the COVID-19 vaccine.

‘In response to public concern about the new COVID-19 vaccine, I would like to emphasise that most of the vaccines that have been invented require multiple doses, which is necessary for longer lasting protection.

Misconceptions about the side effects of vaccines are often cultivated on social media, but in medicine these are often not considered side effects at all. For example, fever, headache, or redness are not side effects! They are the body’s normal reactions and show that the immune system is responding to the vaccine. They might be unpleasant but are not harmful! In medicine, only body functions that are harmful to health are seen as side effects.

In a way, people today are very accustomed to comfort. We are used to nothing hurting or causing discomfort after vaccination – we got the jab and went on with our lives. Now, with the COVID-19 vaccine (depending on the manufacturer) you have to take these small discomforts into account - redness may appear and you might get a slight headache, or a mild fever.

These are minor inconveniences. At present, it looks like older people will tolerate the new COVID-19 vaccine better than young people. Depending on the vaccine, some might react less to the first dose and others to the second one. Everyone will have to consider and weigh up whether they really want to skip the second dose because of a mild headache. To achieve the desired medical effect and protection, the vaccination must be administered in full. Only then does science produce practical results.

It is true that vaccines are not 100 % effective, but 94 % or 96 % is still a very high efficiency rate. Even if you get sick, the disease will be milder.’