Scientists Investigating ‘Long Vax’ Symptoms Linked to COVID Shot

A nurse prepares a vaccine, on Oct. 3, 2021. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

Scientists at Yale and Harvard say they are starting to pay attention to conditions that may be caused by COVID-19 vaccines, which has been dubbed “long vax” in media outlets this week.

“You see one or two patients, and you wonder if it’s a coincidence,” Dr. Anne Louise Oaklander, a neurologist and researcher with Harvard Medical School, told the Science website. “But by the time you’ve seen 10, 20 [patients],” she added, “where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”

They said that symptoms of the so-called long vax, a term that was spawned from “long COVID,” can mimic those of long COVID, including fatigue, headaches, abnormal heart rate, and blood pressure issues.

Patients also describe electric shock-like sensations, burning pain, tingling, and blood circulation issues that come hours, days, and weeks after getting the COVID-19 shot, the article said. Some patients also have symptoms like postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), such as swings in heart rate and blood pressure, fatigue, mental clarity problems, and weakness.

“It’s my obligation, if I truly am a scientist, to have an open mind and learn if there’s something that can be done,” Dr. Harlan Krumholz, a cardiologist at Yale University who is conducting research into the phenomenon. “I’m persuaded that there’s something going on” with the side effects, the doctor told Science, which described long vax as “rare.”

Illness after vaccinations are “a long, relentless disease,” Lawrence Purpura, an infectious disease specialist at Columbia University, told Science, saying that he treats both long COVID and vaccination-related symptoms.

Mr. Krumholz and Yale colleague, immunologist Akiko Iwasaki, started a study called  Listen to Immune, Symptom and Treatment Experiences Now (LISTEN) in a bid to “understand long COVID, post-vaccine adverse events and the corresponding immune responses by collecting information about symptoms and medical history from participants,” according to its website.

“LISTEN researchers will analyze the data for insights about the health of people in the study, including those with long COVID and those with syndromes after vaccination,” it says. “We will characterize demographic, clinical, social, and environmental factors associated with health status. We will share some results back with participants when analysis is completed. We will also treat participants with respect, listen to their suggestions about the study, and engage them in interpreting and disseminating results.”

Another team said they investigated for POTS linked to COVID-19 vaccines after analyzing a database of about 285,000 people in the Los Angeles area who had taken at least one COVID-19 shot. They found that 90 days after a COVID-19 shot, the rate of POTS-related symptoms was some 33 percent higher than in the previous three months, according to their research. Some 2,581 were diagnosed with POTS-like symptoms after vaccination, compared with some 1,945 before that.

Long queues of people are seen at the NSW Vaccination Centre in Homebush in Sydney, Australia, on July 1, 2021. Jenny Evans/Getty Images

“Our data show a relatively clear signal that there probably is an increase in POTS after vaccination and after infection,” Alan Kwan with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, who carried out the research, told the outlet.

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Dr. Peter Marks, director of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine division, told the outlet that the agency “can’t rule out rare cases” of POTS after COVID-19 vaccinations. And individual doctors and medical professionals “may want to take seriously the concept [of] a vaccine side effect” that lasts longer than a few days, he said.

But Mr. Marks claimed that a “sensational headline” about long vax could be misleading and again claimed that the COVID-19 vaccine outweighs the risks and side effects. The FDA and other federal agencies have repeatedly made such assertions despite a growing body of evidence and newly disclosed documents that show vaccine injury reports have soared since COVID-19 vaccines were approved in late 2020.

Earlier this year, The Epoch Times reported on a contractor that was hired for $9.4 million to process reports to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) and who estimated a maximum of 1,000 injury reports per day, described as the “worst-case scenario.” A number of brokers broke through a so-called “red line” on Dec. 26, 2020, or about three weeks after federal agencies gave emergency approval to Moderna’s and Pfizer’s mRNA vaccines.

“Two vaccines have been released since the last report. Since release, the number of incoming COVID-19 reports has significantly exceeded the estimated maximum of 1,000 reports per day,” General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) told U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a status report published on Jan. 15, 2021. “As a result, GDIT is unable to meet processing and other timeframes (data processing, telephone inquiries, clinical [inquiries], etc.).”

Notably, three Michigan state representatives several weeks ago revealed they were among those who were allegedly injured by COVID-19 vaccines. One, Michigan Rep. Brad Paquette, told The Epoch Times in late May that he developed an irregular heartbeat and had to go to the emergency room after getting the shot.

“When I was told I had an irregular heartbeat, I asked the doctor if it could be related to the shot and if it could be myocarditis. He was hesitant to connect it to the vaccine,” Mr. Paquette, who was 33 at the time, said.

The Epoch Times contacted the FDA for comment about the claims on Friday.