896 reports on side effects linked to booster jabs, 42 serious

A total of 896 out of 24,286 reports received on adverse events following immunisation (AEFI) cases up to Jan 15 were related to Covid-19 booster shots, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah says.

He said of the 896 cases, 42 had severe side effects while the rest experienced minimum side effects.

“If we are to looks at the reported numbers, 0.4 for every 1,000 doses given, booster doses was 0.1 for every 1,000 doses given while severe side effects was at 0.05 for every 1,000 doses given,” he told a press conference in Parliament yesterday.

Also present were Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin and Deputy Health Minister Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali.

Meanwhile, Noor Hisham said 9.2 million booster shots had been administered up to Jan 15.

On reports of myocarditis in children, he said only one to three cases per 100,000 children were affected by myocarditis as a result of vaccination, adding that the rate could be 36 times higher if they are not vaccinated.

On AEFI cases involving Kajang Prison inmates, Noor Hisham said 13 of the 18 reports received had been investigated and presented at the Covid-19 Vaccine Special Pharmacovigilance Committee meeting on Jan 12.

“Five more reports, including those involving deaths, are still under investigation… and as a result of JFK’s assessment based on the investigation report received, 10 of the cases were not due to the vaccine received by the prisoners.

“As for three more reports, adverse effects were only a possibility due to the vaccine,” he said.

Meanwhile, Khairy said each AEFI report went through a detailed process to enable the health ministry to conduct investigations including post-mortem and clinical views before confirming whether the case was due to vaccines.

Asked about the public’s concern over booster shots which have been linked to several deaths made viral on social media, Khairy said the ministry would be releasing all AEFI data related to booster doses.

Adding that most of the viral news had nothing to do with vaccination, he said the health ministry would nonetheless conduct thorough investigations, especially on cases involving deaths.