Why People Are Fainting After The Johnson & Johnson Vaccine

After the Food and Drug Administration green-lighted the Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) vaccine with a warning, and after briefly pausing its use in mid-April due to reports of at least six cases of a rare blood clot disorder, it has been revealed that dozens of people have been fainting after receiving the shot.

While the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine has been deemed safe by the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, saying that the benefits of the shot outweigh any risks of the drug, the reports of fainting appear to be caused by the anxiety of getting the shot and not any direct effect caused by vaccine, the CDC said in a published report.

A total of five mass vaccination sites reported as many as 64 “anxiety-related adverse events” in people that received the Johnson & Johnson shot that occurred during the 15-minute observation period. These adverse events included symptoms of dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and excessive sweating, with 17 reports of fainting.

All of the incidents occurred from April 7 to 9, prior to the FDA’s April 13 announcement that recommended that the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine be paused due to reports of the rare blood clots, which primarily presented in women aged 18 to 48.

Those women developed a condition known as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis that affects about five people in 1 million each year. Of the reported cases of those who developed the rare brain blood clots after receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, one woman died and another is in critical condition.

According to the CDC’s investigation into the fainting events that occurred after being inoculated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, 61% of the cases were women with an average age of 36. The cases were typically resolved in about 15 minutes but did cause four out of the five mass vaccination sites to temporarily close, the CDC said.

A total of 13 cases reported that they had a history of fainting when receiving injections or needle aversion. The CDC said that the fainting rate was about 8.2 per 100,000 Johnson & Johnson doses, which is greater than it has seen with the influenza vaccine at 0.05 per 100,000 doses, adding that it was 164 times more common with J&J shot.

“Anxiety-related events, including syncope, can occur immediately after vaccination with any vaccine and might be caused by anxiety about receiving an injection,” CDC said in its report.

However, despite the anxiety caused by the COVID vaccine, the CDC said the Johnson & Johnson shot may be the best option for those who have a needle aversion because it is only one dose. The Moderna and Pfizer COVID vaccines require two doses for full effectiveness.

The agency continued by saying, “Because the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine is administered as a single dose, this vaccine might be a more attractive option for persons who have needle aversion.”

As of Monday, over 104.7 million people had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, accounting for 31.6% of the U.S. population, data from the CDC indicated.

Shares of Johnson & Johnson were trading at $163.48 as of premarket hours, up 75 cents of 0.46%.