CDC postpones meeting about heart inflammation in teenage boys who have had Pfizer or Moderna vaccines due to Juneteenth holiday as pediatrician says condition looked like a HEART ATTACK in kids

  • The CDC has postponed its meeting on report of young men who've had heart inflammation after receiving Pfizer and Moderna vaccines due to Juneteenth
  • The meeting will now be held between June 23 and 25 and members expected to to issue either an update on vaccine safety or risk-benefit of analysis of vaccines
  • One pediatrician in Oregon describes seven cases of heart inflammation in seven male patients between ages 14 and 19
  • She said they complained of chest pain and initial tests looked like they were suffering from heart attacks
  • So far, 300 cases have been reported out of 200 million doses, which means the risk occurs in 0.00015% of people

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has postponed its meeting on heart inflammation among young people who have received either the  Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine due to the Juneteenth national holiday.

On its website, the agency said the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will now be discussing the issue next week during a previously scheduled meeting.

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'The June 18, 2021 COVID-19 meeting is being rescheduled due to the observation of the Juneteenth National Independence Day holiday,' a statement reads.

'The discussion will be rescheduled to be included as part of the June 23-25 ACIP meeting.'    

The ACIP was set to discuss the 300 reports of the heart inflammation, known as myocarditis, in vaccinated males between ages 16 and 24.

It comes as one pediatrician who treated at least seven patients said that during initial examinations, it looked like the teen boys were having heart attacks.

The CDC has postponed its meeting on report of young men who've had heart inflammation after receiving Pfizer and Moderna vaccines due to Juneteenth. Pictured: Max Zito, age 13, is inoculated by Nurse Karen Pagliaro at Hartford Healthcares mass vaccination center at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, Connecticut, May 13
Canada's National Advisory Committee said it is 'preferred' that people whose first dose was AstraZeneca get a second dose of Pfizer and Moderna

Among the 300 known cases, it's unclear how many people have been hospitalized or have recovered.

Last week, it was reported that three were in intensive care, 15 were hospitalized, and 41 had ongoing symptoms. The remaining 167 had recovered. 

This type of heart inflammation can be caused by a variety of infections, including a bout of COVID-19, as well as certain medications. 

With more than 200 million young Americans who have received both doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, it means just 0.00015 percent of people who have been administered the shots have reported such an effect.

The ACIP is not expected to cast a vote on any issues regarding the vaccine rollout, but may issue an update on vaccine safety, the odds of myocarditis and a risk-benefit of analysis of vaccines in teens and young adults. 

In a meeting before the National Vaccine Advisory Committee, which advises the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, on Thursday, Dr Judith Guzman-Cottrill of Oregon Health & Science University, discussed seven cases she treated separately, reported CNN.

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The teenagers, between aged 14 and 19, all said they were experiencing chest pain and were admitted to the hospital to be monitored.

Guzman-Cottrill said initial tests run by clinicians looked like the boys were having acute myocardial infarctions, also known as heart attacks.

However, they were not having heart attacks. Instead, they were suffering from rare cases of myocarditis after being vaccinated against COVID-19.

Guzman-Cottrill documented her findings in the journal Pediatrics, published on June 1.

CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky said on Friday (above) that, so far, 300 cases have been reported out of 200 million doses, which means the risk occurs in 0.00015% of people
The meeting will now be held between June 23 and 25 and members expected to to issue either an update on vaccine safety or risk-benefit of analysis of vaccines (file image)

The patients all recovered and were treated with various methods including aspirin, ibuprofen and steroids.

'Fortunately, none of our patients were critically ill and all of them responded very quickly to treatment,' Guzman-Cottrill said at the meeting.   

She said she wonders if these events are occurring because young people are more likely to have reactogenicity, or adverse reactions, because their immune systems are more robust.

'I am wondering if myocarditis is actually an additional rare adverse event related to systemic reactogenicity and/or immunogenicity and these younger patients just tend to have more reactogenicity compared to older populations - and more severe reactogenicity,' she added.

In an appearance on Good Morning America, CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky said the agency has been closely watching reports of heart inflammation, but said the risk of COVID-19 is higher than the risk of vaccine-related myocarditis.

'What I will say is over 200 million doses  of vaccine have been given and really these events are really quite rare,' she said.

Walensky also encouraged parents, many of whom are still wary, to vaccinate their children.

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'The really most important thing that you need to do is be comfortable as a parent with your choice in making this decision,' she said.

'If you make an informed decision, where you listen to the science around the vaccine, the safety of the vaccine, the overwhelming data we have n the safety vaccines, and how effective they are at preventing severe disease and sickness in your children, I think you'll come down the way I did and vaccinate your children.'