Fever, Chills, etc... 3 More Suspected Adverse Reactions After 'Room Temperature Exposure' Flu Vaccine Administration

On the morning of the 22nd, employees of the Buk-gu Health Center in Gwangju are posting notices about the postponement of free influenza (flu) vaccinations at a hospital in Buk-gu. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Eun-young] On the 29th, the cumulative number of influenza (flu) vaccine recipients reached 873, while the number of people reporting adverse reactions after receiving flu vaccines suspected of being exposed to room temperature during distribution increased to four.

On the 30th, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) released reference materials related to the national influenza vaccination program, stating, "Three additional cases of adverse reactions related to the flu vaccine have been reported, bringing the total to four."

The KDCA previously announced during a briefing on the 28th that one adverse reaction case had been reported. Since then, three more cases have been added, increasing the total number of reported adverse reactions to four.

The three newly added adverse reactions are mild side effects generally associated with vaccination, including fever after vaccination, chills and muscle pain, and bruising at the injection site. The symptoms reported so far include one case of injection site pain, one case of fever, one case of chills and muscle pain, and one case of bruising at the injection site.

According to the KDCA's Vaccination Helper website, fever, sore throat, chills, and cough following influenza vaccination are listed as "common adverse reactions." Mild symptoms are known to disappear within 2 to 3 days.

Earlier, the KDCA confirmed that Shinseong Pharmaceutical, the supplier of the national procurement vaccines, violated the "cold chain" principle by leaving the refrigerated truck door open or placing products on the floor during vaccine delivery, and consequently suspended the national vaccination program on the night of the 21st.

Since then, a total of 5.78 million doses of vaccines suspected of room temperature exposure have been suspended from use. Although the KDCA initially stated on the 22nd that "no one has been vaccinated with the problematic vaccines," investigations revealed that some hospitals did not distinguish between paid and free vaccine supplies when administering vaccinations.

Subsequently, the cumulative number of vaccinated individuals increased as follows: 105 on the 25th → 224 on the 26th → 324 on the 27th → 407 on the 28th → 873 on the 29th.

The KDCA announces related information, including the number of additional vaccinated individuals confirmed, daily around 7 p.m.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.