You are probably wondering if there are any side effects from these vaccines and if the side effects are different from those of previous COVID-19 boosters and vaccinations. Here’s what you need to know. The updated shots from Moderna and Pfizer are bivalent, meaning they target the original COVID-19 virus and the omicron BA.4 and BA.5 virus variants. Health experts say the side effects shouldn’t be much different from the original vaccines, even though there are essentially “two vaccines in one.” “We just don’t have data on that [yet]essentially giving two vaccines in one vaccine — but biologically, I simply wouldn’t expect the side effects, severity, or safety profile of the vaccines to be any different than current vaccines and mRNA boosters,” said Dr. Paul Offit, director of The Center for Vaccine Education at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a member of an independent advisory panel to the US Food and Drug Administration, told CNBC Make It. While there is no official data on side effects specifically related to the upgraded BA.4 and BA.5 COVID-19, there is clinical trial data for a booster that targets an older strain of omicron called BA.1. The following side effects were the most common from the clinical trial targeting BA.1, according to the American Medical Association:
Fatigue Headache Pain in muscles and joints Chills Motion sickness Vomiting Fever
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