A group of researchers at Yale University is lighting up a rare illness in a handful of people after COVID-19 vaccination. The illness, known as "post-vaccination syndrome" (PVS), involves chronic symptoms like extreme fatigue, brain fog, and dizziness that appear immediately after vaccine administration and progress over time.

Key findings about PVS

The researchers compared blood samples from 42 patients suffering from PVS with those of 22 people who did not develop symptoms following vaccination. Their results showed significant differences in immune responses between the two groups.

One of the most striking discoveries was that PVS patients exhibited lower levels of two critical types of white blood cells. Additionally, those who had never contracted COVID-19 before vaccination had lower antibody levels against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, likely due to receiving fewer vaccine doses.

One group of patients with PVS was found to have elevated levels of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein—a variable that has itself been linked in the past with a greater risk of long COVID. But the spike protein was not present in all those with PVS, indicating that there may be other underlying factors.

The research also detected possible risk factors that may lead to PVS development, such as autoimmunity, tissue damage, and Epstein-Barr virus reactivation.

Although this has been established, the researchers point out that their research is still in its beginning and needs further confirmation.

Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, co-senior author of the study and Sterling Professor of Immunobiology at Yale School of Medicine, said, "This work is still in its early stages."

 Dr. Harlan Krumholz, another co-senior author, emphasized the significance of continued research, saying that understanding PVS more deeply is key to effective treatment for individuals who suffer from it.

Dr. Marc Siegel of NYU Langone Health commented on the study, noting that vaccinated individuals with prolonged symptoms might have residual spike protein presence. He noted that these patients tend to present evidence of immune system disturbances, including elevated inflammatory immune cells and low CD4 helper cells.

"This needs to be further studied in terms of understanding how common prolonged COVID vaccine side effects are and how to predict them and treat them," Dr. Siegel added.

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