Covid-19 Vaccines and Teens: What to Know About Myocarditis Risk

We don’t yet know if temporary heart inflammation is a rare side effect of mRNA vaccination, but it’s possible

Photo: Heather Hazzan/SELF Magazine

As parents consider the risks and benefits of the Covid-19 vaccines for their kids, they may have heard about a heart inflammation condition called myocarditis or pericarditis occurring after some people get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. Here’s what you need to know.

What’s the tl;dr?

• There appears to be a higher risk of myocarditis or pericarditis — an inflammation of the heart muscle or its outer lining — in people ages ages 16–30 who get an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer or Moderna).
• The risk varies from 1–25 cases per one million mRNA vaccine doses, depending on the person’s age, which vaccine they get, and whether it’s the first or second dose. (Simplified, the risk about 1 in 50,000.)
• It’s not clear yet if there’s an increased risk for those aged 12–15.
• Symptoms are chest pain, shortness of breath, and/or heart palpitations that occur within a few days of vaccination.
• More than half of people who developed this heart inflammation were male.
• The vast majority of people…