Tararua doctors and medical centre

Getting 2 doses of the Pfizer vaccine means you are much less likely to catch COVID-19, including the Delta variant.

As with any vaccine, the Pfizer vaccine may not fully protect everyone who gets it. However, if you do catch COVID-19, the vaccine will give you a high degree of protection from serious illness. This means you could have no COVID-19 symptoms, or will have much fewer, milder symptoms, and recover faster.

Vaccine effectiveness and protection — Ministry of Health

We know it is a lot harder for the virus to spread between people who are vaccinated. To be safe, however, we must assume there is still a risk of transmission.

This is why it is important to continue taking extra safety measures, such as wearing a mask and washing your hands regularly, after you have been vaccinated.

Vaccine effectiveness and protection — Ministry of Health

Like all medicines, you might experience some mild side effects in the days after getting your vaccination. This is common, and a sign that your body is learning to fight the virus.

Most side effects do not last long, and will not stop you from having a second dose or going about your daily life. Some side effects may temporarily affect your ability to drive or use machinery.

Some side effects are more common after the second dose.

Find out about reporting side effects

Common side effects

In the clinical trials, common side effects were reported in every 1 in 10 to 1 in 100 people. These include:

• pain or swelling at the injection site
• feeling tired or fatigued
• headache
• muscle aches
• chills
• joint pain
• fever
• redness at the injection site
• nausea.

Uncommon side effects

In the clinical trials, uncommon side effects were reported in every 1 in 100 to 1 in 1,000 people. These include:

• enlarged lymph nodes
• feeling unwell
• insomnia.

Rare side effects

Temporary one-sided facial drooping has been reported as a rare side effect, affecting every 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 10,000 people in the clinical trials.

Myocarditis 

Myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart muscle wall and is another known rare side effect of vaccination with the Pfizer vaccine. The risk of developing myocarditis is higher if you become infected with COVID-19 than as a reaction to the Pfizer vaccine.

Symptoms of myocarditis can include:

• new onset chest pain
• shortness of breath
• abnormal/racing heartbeat.

It is important that anyone who experiences these symptoms seeks medical attention promptly.

To date, the rate is highest in young men but can occur in people of all ages after the first or second dose.

There are many other possible causes of myocarditis, and the most common cause is a viral infection, including COVID-19.

Learn more about side effects — Ministry of Health(external link)

Allergic reactions

If you have had a severe or immediate allergic reaction to any vaccine or injection in the past, tell your vaccinator when you arrive. Serious allergic reactions do happen but are extremely rare.

The Pfizer vaccine has been provisionally approved by New Zealand’s medicines safety authority, Medsafe.

This means it has met international standards for quality, safety and efficacy, and Pfizer must provide ongoing data to Medsafe.

The main parts of the clinical trials are complete, and Pfizer is continuing to monitor the long-term use of the vaccine until 2023.

It is not unusual for medicines to have provisional approval before the end of clinical trials. A common example is anti-cancer medicines.

Medsafe will continue to check that the safety of the vaccine is the same as seen in the clinical trials. This is the same process for all medicines being used in New Zealand.