SIDE EFFECTS FOLLOWING SINOPHARM COVID-19 VACCINATION IN SALAH AL-DIN / IRAQ: A COMMUNITY-BASED STUDY

Abstract

To this day, vaccination is the primary intervention to eliminate the expansion of COVID-19 and avoid its health consequences for humanity. This study was aimed to appreciate the adverse side effects of the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 606 individuals attended the COVID-19 vaccine health center of Baiji Health Sector, Salah alDin Governorate (Iraq), between January and December 2021. Males constituted about 59% compared to 41% of females of the study population. The study showed that 3.5% of the subjects were in the age group of less than 20 years old, while 65.5% of the total participants was in the age group of 20-40 years. The sequence of side effects for the study participants was as follows: pain at the injection site 40%, fever 30%, headache 20%, fatigue or lethargy 4%, redness or reaction at the injection site 3.5%, complaints of muscles pain 1%, gastrointestinal symptoms 1%, and mild allergic reactions 0.5%. Also, results demonstrated that 68% of individuals had side effects from the first dose, and these people were treated. Besides, no person who received the Sinopharm vaccine reported serious side effects or fatal complications during the study period, as the mortality rate for Sinopharm was 0%. Thus, it can be concluded that this vaccine is effective and safe for all age groups.