Largest COVID Vaccine Study Ever Reveals The Actual Health Risks You Face

Currently, 33 COVID-19 vaccines have been authorized for use in countries across the globe. In this feature, we look at the types and their reported side effects. In the most extensive global vaccine safety study conducted to date, researchers have identified associations between COVID-19 vaccines and rare neurological, blood, and heart-related conditions, albeit with small increases. The study included 99 million people across 8 countries.

While these vaccines have proven effective in preventing severe illness, fatalities, and long-term COVID-19 symptoms, concerns have arisen regarding their potential side effects.

The largest global vaccine safety study has linked COVID- 19 vaccines with small increases in health conditions involving the brain, blood, and heart. 

The international team of researchers emphasizes that the chances of getting any of these conditions are still very low. It's important to note that extensive research shows COVID-19 vaccines protect against serious illness, death, and long COVID symptoms.

As the global effort to produce vaccines that can curb the COVID-19 pandemic forges ahead, headlines continue to highlight both developmental breakthroughs and safety concerns.

This article summarizes the known side effects of the 33 authorized vaccines and provides insight into risks that researchers are still investigating.

Currently authorized COVID-19 vaccines

The table below gives an overview of the 33 authorized vaccines, categorized by type, based on how they function. It also shows their efficacy.

Each of the following vaccines has received use authorization in at least one country.

Name	Manufacturer	Type of vaccine	Efficacy rate
BNT162b2 (Comirnaty)	Pfizer-BioNTech	mRNA	95%
mRNA-1273 (Spikevax)	Moderna	mRNA	94.1%Trusted Source
TAK-919*	Takeda	mRNA	94.1%
Ad26.COV2.S	Janssen (Johnson & Johnson)	Viral vector	66.3%Trusted Source
AZD1222 (Vaxzevria)	Oxford-AstraZeneca	Viral vector	81.3%Trusted Source
Covishield**	Serum Institute of India	Viral vector	81.3%
Convidecia (Ad5-nCov)	CanSino	Viral vector	65.28%
Sputnik V	Gamaleya	Viral vector	91.6%Trusted Source
Sputnik Light	Gamaleya	Viral vector	79.4%
Covaxin	Bharat Biotech	Inactivated	80.6%
Covilo (BBIBP-CorV)	Sinopharm (Beijing)	Inactivated	79.34%Trusted Source
Inactivated (Vero Cell)	Sinopharm (Wuhan)	Inactivated	72.8%
CoronaVac	Sinovac	Inactivated	50.38%
CoviVac (KoviVac)	Chumakov Center	Inactivated	Unknown
QazCovid-in (QazVac)	Kazakhstan RIBSP	Inactivated	Unknown
KCONVAC (KconecaVac)	Minhai Biotechnology Co	Inactivated	Unknown
COVID-19 inactivated vaccine (COVIran Barekat)	Shifa Pharmed Industrial Co	Inactivated	Unknown
Turkovac (ERUCOV-VAC)	Health Institutes of Turkey	Inactivated	Unknown
FAKHRAVAC (MIVAC)	Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research	Inactivated	Unknown
ZF2001 (RBD-dimer, Zifivax)	Anhui Zhifei Longcom	Protein subunit	Unknown
EpiVacCorona	FBRI	Protein subunit	Unknown
Aurora-CoV (EpiVacCorona-N)	FBRI	Protein subunit	Unknown
Abdala (CIGB-66)	Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology	Protein subunit	92.28%
MVC-COV1901	Medigen	Protein subunit	Unknown
COVAX-19 (SpikoGen)	Vaxine/CinnaGen Co	Protein subunit	Unknown
Corbevax (BECOV2A)	Biological E Limited	Protein subunit	Unknown
Soberana 02 (FINLAY-FR-2, Pastu Covac)	Instituto Finlay de Vacunas Cuba	Protein subunit	71%
Soberana Plus (FINLAY-FR-1A)	Instituto Finlay de Vacunas Cuba	Protein subunit	Unknown
Recombinant SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (CHO Cell)	National Vaccine and Serum Institute	Protein subunit	Unknown
Nuvaxovid (NVX-CoV2373)	Novavax	Protein subunit	87.5%Trusted Source
COVOVAX***	Serum Institute of India	Protein subunit	87.5%
Razi Cov Pars	Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute	Protein subunit	Unknown
ZyCoV-D	Zydus Cadila	DNATrusted Source	66.6%

Additionally, there is an elevated risk of pericarditis, and inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart, associated with certain doses of the Moderna vaccine.

Viral-vector vaccines, such as the one developed by the University of Oxford and produced by AstraZeneca Plc, have shown associations with specific adverse events.

These include an increased risk of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, a type of blood clot in the brain, and Guillain-Barre syndrome, a neurological disorder where the immune system mistakenly attacks the peripheral nervous system.

Notably, the Oxford-developed vaccine has been associated with a significant increase in Guillain-Barre syndrome cases compared to mRNA vaccines.

Common side effects

Vaccines allow the body to build immunity by activating T and B lymphocytes, cells that recognize virus infected host cells and those that produce antibodies to combat the virus, respectively.

A vaccine cannot cause COVID-19. No vaccine contains a complete form of the virus capable of causing illness.

While their body builds immunity, it is normal for a person to experience minor side effects.

Despite these findings, the exact cause of the syndrome remains unknown, and there are currently no standardized diagnostic tests or treatments available.

Principal investigator Harlan Krumholz from the Yale New Haven Hospital Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation emphasized the importance of understanding these adverse events to alleviate suffering and enhance vaccine safety. He acknowledges that while vaccines have undoubtedly saved numerous lives, it’s crucial to address the concerns of individuals who experience adverse effects.