Expert Warns Of More Side Effects With Booster Shots

A government-appointed expert tasked with looking into vaccine reactions has urged people who are about to receive their second dose of Covid-19 jabs to consider taking time off work, saying they will most likely suffer more side effects than when they got their first jab.

Professor Ivan Hung, co-convenor of the Expert Committee on Clinical Events Assessment Following Covid-19 Immunisation, made the suggestion as the first batch of Sinovac recipients are due to take their second dose, or booster, later this week.

Hung told a television programme on Sunday that according to overseas experience, people tend to develop more symptoms after receiving their second shot, including swelling, fever and fatigue.

“I’d advice them to take half a day or a day off from work after getting inoculated”, he said.

Hung also called on those who’ve demonstrated serious side effects after their first shot, such as facial paralysis or Guillain-Barré syndrome, not to take the second dose.

“Those who’ve developed rashes after their first jab should also first seek the advice of their family doctors before deciding whether to take the booster,” he added.