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shops Donate safely using our house clearance service Donate safely to our home stores Operating a safe delivery service for our home stores Payment and receipts Refunds and exchanges Safety measures Storage of paid for goods Volunteer in our shops Book a house clearance What we do Back What we do Equality, diversity and inclusion Our Annual Report 2022 Our strategy Back Our strategy We work with patients and the public for better health and care Changes we want to see in the world We grow support and income We fund research to save and improve lives We strive for excellence Contact us Back Contact us Feedback and complaints BHF in your area Back BHF in your area Cymru Northern Ireland Public engagement events Scotland Wales Our people Back Our people How we are governed Our Executive Group Our Trustees Our ambassadors Our Royal Patron Our research Back Our research CureHeart – a future cure for inherited heart muscle diseases Heart conditions research Circulatory conditions research Risk factor research Research funding data visualised Our research successes Our clinical trials Heart Statistics Heart statistics visualised Research Excellence and Accelerator Awards Our Professors Our science image competition Influencing change Back Influencing change Campaign successes Supporting the charity sector Creating Healthier Environments Legacy of Covid Policy response to Covid-19 Strengthening Health & Care systems Turning back the tide on heart and circulatory diseases Working in partnership with others We work with government Where your money goes Who we are Work with us For professionals Coronavirus Sign in/Register Heart Matters More than a magazine: information, inspiration and support Heart Matters magazine Heart Matters magazine Activity Medical Real life News Nutrition Research Wellbeing Home Information & support Heart Matters magazine News Coronavirus & heart disease Covid vaccines: your questions answered Myocarditis and Covid-19 vaccines: should you be worried? Myocarditis and Covid-19 vaccines: should you be worried? We look at the link between myocarditis and Covid-19 vaccines, including which age groups are at a higher risk. Updated 15 December 2022 What's on this page Does the Covid-19 vaccine cause heart inflammation (myocarditis or pericarditis)? What is the risk of getting myocarditis or pericarditis after the vaccine? Do other vaccines carry the same risk? What research is the BHF doing? What is myocarditis? What is pericarditis? Who is at risk from myocarditis following the vaccine? Are children and young people at higher risk of heart inflammation from the vaccine? Is there a risk of cardiac arrest from the Covid vaccine? Is there any link between the Covid-19 vaccine and collapses at football matches? How would I know if I had myocarditis after the vaccine? Can the vaccine cause changes to your heartbeat? I’ve heard about people getting myocarditis after the vaccine and I’m worried. Should I have my second dose/ booster dose? I was diagnosed with myocarditis after having the vaccine. Should I have another dose? I've had myocarditis or pericarditis in the past, should I have a Covid vaccine? Are there still unanswered questions? Does the Covid-19 vaccine cause myocarditis (heart inflammation)? There have been rare cases of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) following the Moderna and (even more rarely) Pfizer vaccines in the UK. Myocarditis has also been listed as a rare possible side effect of the Novavax vaccine, after a very small number of cases were reported during clinical trials. Reports of myocarditis following any Covid-19 vaccine remain rare, and the people who have had this this have usually experienced a mild illness. Those affected have usually quickly felt better with rest and simple treatments. Research suggests that overall, myocarditis is no more likely to be triggered by a Covid vaccine by than any other vaccine. It's also worth noting that Covid-19 itself is much more likely to cause myocarditis than the vaccine is, and people who are vaccinated have a much lower risk of getting other serious complications caused by Covid-19. What is the risk of getting myocarditis or pericarditis after the vaccine? The risk of getting myocarditis or pericarditis after the vaccine is very low. According to the MHRA's Yellow Card reporting summary, even in the highest-risk age group (18-29), there were just 29 reports of suspected myocarditis or pericarditis for every million second doses of the Pfizer vaccine given in the UK up until 23 November 2022. The risk is even lower following a monovalent Pfizer booster, with just 17 reports per million people in this age group. In other age groups the risk is even lower. For Moderna, there were 70 cases of suspected myocarditis or pericarditis for every million second doses given in the UK, in this age group. As with the Pfizer vaccine, the risk is much lower after a booster, with just 20 reports per million monovalent Moderna boosters given (up until 23 November 2022). In other age groups the risk is even lower. The World Health Organisation has reviewed data from 744,235 doses of the Novavax vaccine given in Australia, Canada, the European Union, New Zealand, and South Korea up until 30 April 2022. Amongst these recipients, there were four reports of myocarditis, 29 reports of pericarditis, and two reports of myopericarditis. More recent data from Australia (until 21 August 2022) showed seven cases of myocarditis and 26 cases of probable pericarditis after 209,000 doses of the Novavax Covid vaccine. Serious cases of myocarditis after the vaccine so far have been exceptionally rare, although more research is being carried out into the long-term effects. Do other vaccines carry the same risk? Research published in April 2022 shows that there is no greater risk of developing heart inflammation after a Covid-19 vaccine than after other common vaccines, including the flu jab. Researchers from Singapore looked at the findings of 22 different studies, covering 405 million doses of different vaccines around the world, - including flu, smallpox, polio, measles, mumps and rubella. Overall the rates of myocarditis and pericarditis following Covid vaccines weren’t significantly different to other vaccines, including flu, although rates of myocarditis or pericarditis in young men were higher following mRNA-based Covid vaccines such as Moderna or Pfizer. The researchers, writing in the Lancet medical journal, suggested that the rare cases of post-vaccine myocarditis and pericarditis might be connected to the overall immune response to vaccination, not specifically because of the Covid-19 vaccination or the spike protein it is based on. They suggested that the reports of myocarditis and pericarditis might be because of the large scale of Covid-19 vaccination and the close scrutiny it has had. Based on these findings, the researchers said that the benefits of Covid-19 vaccines (including a reduced risk of severe illness or death) far outweigh the very small risk of myocarditis or pericarditis, which is also seen for other vaccines. What research is the BHF doing? Because myocarditis associated with Covid vaccines is a recent and rare issue, there is uncertainty about its long-term health risks. BHF-funded researchers are looking at myocarditis caused by Covid-19, as well as the rare cases of myocarditis linked to the vaccine… truncated (14,510 more characters in archive)