A Boston doctor with a shellfish allergy had a serious reaction to Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine and has recovered after he was allowed to use his allergy autoinjector, health officials reported.
The man, Dr. Hossein Sadrzadeh, who has a severe shellfish allergy, according to NBC Boston, received the vaccine Thursday and was then observed post-vaccination, as is standard, Boston Medical Center said in a statement.
"He felt he was developing an allergic reaction and was allowed to self-administer his personal [allergy autoinjector]. He was taken to the Emergency Department, evaluated, treated, observed and discharged. He is doing well today," the statement said.
Sadrzadeh's allergic reaction is reported to be the first from the Moderna vaccine, according to The New York Times.
The Times reported that at least six people have developed anaphylaxis after they got the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The two vaccines have similar ingredients, according to The Times.
A spokesman for Moderna told The Times that the company does not comment on individual cases.
Sadrzadeh, a geriatric oncology fellow, said his tongue and his throat began to tingle after he got the injection, according to The Boston Globe. He then began to sweat and go pale, and he felt cold, The Globe reported.
Sadrzadeh called it the worst allergic reaction he's had since he was 11 years old. By Friday, he had recovered.
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Although it's unclear what ingredient may have triggered Sadrzadeh's reaction, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that people who have had "severe allergic reaction to any ingredient in a COVID-19 vaccine" should "not get that specific vaccine."
"If you have had a severe allergic reaction to other vaccines or injectable therapies, you should ask your doctor if you should get a COVID-19 vaccine. Your doctor will help you decide if it is safe for you to get vaccinated," it says.
The most common side effects of the Moderna vaccine have been fatigue, headache and muscle pain, NBC Boston reported.
More than 1.9 million people have received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, according to the latest data from the CDC. More than 9.5 million doses have been distributed.
