More than 1,000 New Brunswickers have had an adverse reaction after getting a COVID-19 vaccine, and more than a quarter of them were considered “serious,” according to the Department of Health.
A total of more than two million vaccines have been administered in the province, putting the incidence at roughly 0.06 per cent.
Spokesperson Adam Bowie did not provide any information about the nature of the reactions, but the Public Health Agency of Canada defines an adverse event as “any untoward medical occurrence which follows immunization.” It isn’t necessarily causally related to the vaccine.
The adverse event may be any:
Unfavourable or unintended sign (for example: skin rash).
Abnormal laboratory finding.
Symptom.
Disease.
An event is considered serious if it:
Results in death.
Is life-threatening, such as anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction.
Requires in-patient hospitalization or prolongation of existing hospitalization.
Results in persistent or significant disability/incapacity.
Results in a congenital anomaly/birth defect.
Bowie did not provide a breakdown of reactions by type of vaccine or by ages, either.
Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported a possible link between ischemic strokes in people aged 65 and older and the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 bivalent vaccine, which is designed to target the Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.
An ischemic stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is interrupted or reduced by a blockage or clot. This prevents the brain tissue from getting the oxygen and nutrients it needs to survive.
“Although the totality of the data currently suggests that it is very unlikely that the signal in VSD [vaccine safety datalink] represents a true clinical risk, we believe it is important to share this information with the public,” the U.S. health officials had said.
Monitoring the situation closely
New Brunswick Public Health, the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada are all aware of the U.S. report, issued on Jan. 13, based on their vaccine adverse event reporting surveillance system, said Bowie.
“So far, these safety concerns have not been raised through other vaccine safety monitoring systems in the United States, or in other countries — including Canada,” he said in an emailed statement.
“It should be noted the CDC did not recommend any changes to vaccination practices at this time, and that these adverse events have not yet been confirmed to have been caused by the vaccines administered.
If New Brunswick Public Health’s recommendations regarding the safety or suitability of this vaccine were to change, that information would be communicated to the public.– Adam Bowie, Department of Health spokesperson
“Additional analysis and reviews must be completed to further explore the causes of these reactions and that data is used as part of the continuous monitoring of the safety of these vaccines.”
Still, New Brunswick and federal health officials are “monitoring this situation closely,” said Bowie.
“If New Brunswick Public Health’s recommendations regarding the safety or suitability of this vaccine were to change, that information would be communicated to the public,” he said.
‘Less than five’ strokes after bivalent reported in Canada
As of Jan. 1, more than seven million doses of mRNA bivalent vaccines have been administered in Canada, and the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada say they’ve not observed any elevated risks or safety signals for thromboembolic or vascular events following the administration of these vaccines, noted Bowie.
“Less than five” reports of ischemic stroke following the administration of an mRNA bivalent vaccine have been submitted to the federal bodies to date, he said. Only one of these involved a Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent vaccine for a person aged 65 years or older.
In New Brunswick, 1,148 adverse events related to COVID-19 vaccines have been reported to the Department of Health, from the 2,028,684 total doses administered between Dec. 14, 2020, and Jan. 14, 2023, said Bowie.
“Of those, 313 events were labelled serious in nature,” he said.
Benefits continue to outweigh risks
“Evidence indicates that the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines continue to outweigh the risks of the disease,” the federal website states.
Across Canada, of the 96,432,067 COVID-19 vaccines administered to date, adverse events have been reported by 53,611 people. That’s about six people out of every 10,000 people vaccinated who have reported one or more adverse events.
Of those, 10,565 adverse events were considered serious in nature, an incidence of 0.01 per cent.
“Citizens should be aware that vaccine providers are legally required to report any adverse events in New Brunswick under the Public Health Act, and immunization data is regularly monitored to ensure that any unusual safety trends would be identified quickly,” said Bowie.
Federal health officials also review data from provinces and territories across the country to identify any new or emerging trends, he said.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A linebacker at Division II West Virginia State was fatally shot during what the university said Thursday is being investigated by police as a home invasion.
The body of Jyilek Zyiare Harrington, 21, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was found inside an apartment Wednesday night in Charleston, police Lt. Tony Hazelett said in a statement.
Hazelett said several gunshots were fired during a disturbance in a hallway and inside the apartment. The statement said Harrington had multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said they had no information on a possible suspect.
West Virginia State said counselors were available to students and faculty on campus.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Jyilek’s family as they mourn the loss of this incredible young man,” West Virginia State President Ericke S. Cage said in a letter to students and faculty.
Harrington, a senior, had eight total tackles, including a sack, in a 27-24 win at Barton College last week.
“Jyilek truly embodied what it means to be a student-athlete and was a leader not only on campus but in the community,” West Virginia State Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Nate Burton said. “Jyilek was a young man that, during Christmas, would create a GoFundMe to help less fortunate families.”
Burton said donations to a fund established by the athletic department in Harrington’s memory will be distributed to an organization in Charlotte to continue his charity work.
West Virginia State’s home opener against Carson-Newman, originally scheduled for Thursday night, has been rescheduled to Friday, and a private vigil involving both teams was set for Thursday night. Harrington previously attended Carson-Newman, where he made seven tackles in six games last season. He began his college career at Division II Erskine College.
“Carson-Newman joins West Virginia State in mourning the untimely passing of former student-athlete Jyilek Harrington,” Carson-Newman Vice President of Athletics Matt Pope said in a statement. “The Harrington family and the Yellow Jackets’ campus community is in our prayers. News like this is sad to hear anytime, but today it feels worse with two teams who knew him coming together to play.”
DETROIT (AP) — Joe Schmidt, the Hall of Fame linebacker who helped the Detroit Lions win NFL championships in 1953 and 1957 and later coached the team, has died. He was 92.
The Lions said family informed the team Schmidt died Wednesday. A cause of death was not provided.
One of pro football’s first great middle linebackers, Schmidt played his entire NFL career with the Lions from 1953-65. An eight-time All-Pro, he was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973 and the college football version in 2000.
“Joe likes to say that at one point in his career, he was 6-3, but he had tackled so many fullbacks that it drove his neck into his shoulders and now he is 6-foot,” said the late Lions owner William Clay Ford, Schmidt’s presenter at his Hall of Fame induction in 1973. “At any rate, he was listed at 6-feet and as I say was marginal for that position. There are, however, qualities that certainly scouts or anybody who is drafting a ballplayer cannot measure.”
Born in Pittsburgh, Schmidt played college football in his hometown at Pitt, beginning his stint there as a fullback and guard before coach Len Casanova switched him to linebacker.
“Pitt provided me with the opportunity to do what I’ve wanted to do, and further myself through my athletic abilities,” Schmidt said. “Everything I have stemmed from that opportunity.”
Schmidt dealt with injuries throughout his college career and was drafted by the Lions in the seventh round in 1953. As defenses evolved in that era, Schmidt’s speed, savvy and tackling ability made him a valuable part of some of the franchise’s greatest teams.
Schmidt was elected to the Pro Bowl 10 straight years from 1955-64, and after his arrival, the Lions won the last two of their three NFL titles in the 1950s.
In a 1957 playoff game at San Francisco, the Lions trailed 27-7 in the third quarter before rallying to win 31-27. That was the NFL’s largest comeback in postseason history until Buffalo rallied from a 32-point deficit to beat Houston in 1993.
“We just decided to go after them, blitz them almost every down,” Schmidt recalled. “We had nothing to lose. When you’re up against it, you let both barrels fly.”
Schmidt became an assistant coach after wrapping up his career as a player. He was Detroit’s head coach from 1967-72, going 43-35-7.
Schmidt was part of the NFL’s All-Time Team revealed in 2019 to celebrate the league’s centennial season. Of course, he’d gone into the Hall of Fame 46 years earlier.
Not bad for an undersized seventh-round draft pick.
“It was a dream of mine to play football,” Schmidt told the Detroit Free Press in 2017. “I had so many people tell me that I was too small. That I couldn’t play. I had so many negative people say negative things about me … that it makes you feel good inside. I said, ‘OK, I’ll prove it to you.’”
VICTORIA – British Columbia‘s Environment Assessment Office has fined Coastal GasLink Pipeline Ltd. $590,000 for “deficiencies” in the construction of its pipeline crossing the province.
The office says in a statement that 10 administrative penalties have been levied against the company for non-compliance with requirements of its environmental assessment certificate.
It says the fines come after problems with erosion and sediment control measures were identified by enforcement officers along the pipeline route across northern B.C. in April and May 2023.
The office says that the latest financial penalties reflect its escalation of enforcement due to repeated non-compliance of its requirements.
Four previous penalties have been issued for failing to control erosion and sediment valued at almost $800,000, while a fifth fine of $6,000 was handed out for providing false or misleading information.
The office says it prioritized its inspections along the 670-kilometre route by air and ground as a result of the continued concerns, leading to 59 warnings and 13 stop-work orders along the pipeline that has now been completed.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
