Most Common Side Effects Reported After COVID Vaccine

The Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines appear to be relatively safe when it comes to side effects, though the CDC has reported 640 cases where the side effects became "serious." That included 113 deaths.

Overall, the agency reported 6,994 instances of adverse events following vaccination, including 6,354 considered "non-serious."

"The data is based on submissions to the agency’s text messaging system v-safe and the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, a national vaccine safety surveillance program," per CNBC. "The analysis used data from the first month of vaccinations, between Dec. 14 and Jan. 13., when there were more than 13.7 million doses administered."

According to the CDC, reactions to the second dose of the Pfizer and/or Moderna vaccine were more frequent than the first. Most common side effects include intense headache, fatigue and dizziness, as well as chills and nausea. Some listed muscle aches, fever and pain at the injection site, the CDC reported.

"There were 46 reports of anaphylaxis, a severe and potentially life-threatening allergic reaction, from those who received Pfizer’s vaccine and 16 cases for those who received Moderna’s, according to the CDC," CNBC reported. "The agency said the occurrence of the reaction is in the range of those reported for the influenza vaccine."