Two allergic reactions to Pfizer vaccine lead to warning in UK

Enlarge / Margaret Keenan, 90, who was the first patient in the United Kingdom to receive the first of two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, reacts as she talks with healthcare assistant Lorraine Hill, while preparing to leave University Hospital Coventry, in Coventry on December 9, 2020, a day after receiving the vaccine. (credit: Johnny Weeks | Getty Images)

People with a significant history of allergies should not receive the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, the UK medical regulator has said after two NHS staff experienced an adverse reaction.

June Raine, chief executive for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), told a UK parliamentary committee that the two individuals had the allergic reaction shortly after receiving the vaccine and that the regulator was investigating. Both people had a history of serious allergies and carried adrenalin pens.

We know from the very extensive clinical trials that this wasn't a feature but if we need to strengthen our advice...we get that advice to the field immediately," Dr. Raine said.

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