4 volunteers in a Pfizer Corona vaccine trial contracted Bell’s palsy

The Citizen – Translated by: Menat Allah Ashraf

Medical reports said that there were four volunteers in the trial of the effectiveness of the emerging corona vaccine (Covid-19) from Pfizer who had so-called Bell’s palsy, a form of temporary facial paralysis.

However, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported that there is no clear way that the Corona vaccine could cause Bell’s palsy, but at the same time they warned that doctors should monitor for uncomfortable side effects and Pfizer must continue to monitor the number of people who They develop these symptoms.

No one knows exactly the cause of Bell’s palsy, which disappears on its own most of the time, and it is not the first time that the case has been linked to vaccines, but scientists decided in the end that vaccines are not the cause of Bell’s palsy in all cases except for one case, which is The Swiss flu vaccine, which was sold during the 2001-2002 flu season, was promptly withdrawn from the market.

Of the four people who had hemiplegia, one noticed facial paralysis or weakness within three days after receiving it. Corona Vaccine, But it returned to normal after about three days, another person got infected nine days after the dose, the third after 37 days and the fourth after 48 days, and they all recovered within 10 to 21 days.

Most of the sufferers notice that one side of their face begins to droop and weakens the muscles, and in rare cases, both sides of the face may become temporarily paralyzed, and some people also become more sensitive to sound, while others lose their sense of taste, develop a headache, or develop pain around the jaw or ear.

Doctors do not know the exact cause of this, but it is thought that it occurs when swelling and inflammation presses on one or more of the facial nerves, causing patients to lose control of those muscles. Over the course of weeks or months.

There are some patterns for people who tend to develop Bell’s palsy, it is more common in pregnant women, especially during the third trimester of pregnancy or shortly after birth, and people with diabetes are also more likely to develop Bell’s disease.

An upper respiratory infection, such as a cold or influenza, is also a risk factor, even Covid-19 itself can be a risk factor, and in fact, facial paralysis has been reported in three Brazilian patients, one in China, and a pregnant woman in Portugal. Number of Indian patients.