December 14, 2021

Study looking at risks of myocarditis, pericarditis, and cardiac arrhythmias associated with COVID-19 vaccination or SARS-CoV-2 infection

Scientists undertook a self-controlled case series to investigate the risk of developing of myocarditis, pericarditis, and cardiac arrhythmias within 28 days of a first or second dose of either the ChAdOx1 nCov-19, BNT162b2 mRNA and mRNA-1273 vaccine, or within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 PCR test.

This study included data from 38 million people across England, and is coming from the same group of scientists who had used this dataset to report previously on COVID-19 vaccines and rare blood clotting events (https://www.sciencemediacentre.org/update-on-research-into-vaccines-covid-19-and-blood-clotting-events/) and neurological complications (https://www.sciencemediacentre.org/study-looking-at-covid-19-vaccines-sars-cov-2-infection-and-rare-neurological-complications/).

The study was scheduled for publication in Nature Medicine on 14 December 2021 at 10:00 (London time), 14 December 2021 at 05:00 (US Eastern Time). Journalists dialled in to this press briefing to hear from the scientists who carried out the research and ask them any questions.

Speakers included:

Prof Aziz Sheikh, Professor of Primary Care Research & Development and Director of the Usher Institute at The University of Edinburgh

Dr Martina Patone, Statistician at the University of Oxford

Prof Nicholas Mills, British Heart Foundation Chair of Cardiology and Consultant Cardiologist, BHF Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences & Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh

Prof Julia Hippisley-Cox, Professor of Clinical Epidemiology and General Practice at the University of Oxford

This Briefing was accompanied by an SMC Roundup of Comments.