Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jul 30;10(8):1220.
doi: 10.3390/vaccines10081220.

Correlation between Adverse Events and Antibody Titers among Healthcare Workers Vaccinated with BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine

Itzchak Levy  1   2 , Einav Gal Levin  2   3 , Liraz Olmer  4 , Gili Regev-Yochay  2   3 , Nancy Agmon-Levin  2   5 , Anat Wieder-Finesod  1   2 , Victoria Indenbaum  6 , Karin Herzog  7 , Ram Doolman  8 , Keren Asraf  8 , Rebecca Halperin  1 , Yaniv Lustig  2   7 , Galia Rahav  1   2
Affiliations

Correlation between Adverse Events and Antibody Titers among Healthcare Workers Vaccinated with BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine

Itzchak Levy et al. Vaccines (Basel). .

Abstract

Objectives: The BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine has been found to be highly effective in preventing COVID-19 but is associated with increased reactogenicity. We aimed to examine the correlation between immunogenicity and reactogenicity of the BNT162b2 vaccine. Methods: Subjects without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection that participated in active surveillance after being vaccinated with the BNT162b2 vaccine were included. Study participants reported adverse drug reactions (ADRs) through questionnaires administered by text message after receiving each dose of the vaccine. A reactogenicity score was developed based on the type and duration of ADRs. In addition, anti-receptor binding domain (RBD) levels and neutralization assays were performed 7−21 and 7−38 days after the first and second vaccine doses, respectively. Associations between ADRs and antibody levels were assessed by Spearman correlations. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with ADRs. Results: A total of 831 health care workers were included. The mean age was 46.5 years (SD = 11.8) and 75.5% were females. 83.4% and 83.3% had at least one local ADR after the first and second doses, respectively. 33% and 83.2% had at least one systemic ADR after the first and second doses, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis found a significant correlation between ADR score and anti-RBD-IgG titers (r = 0.366; p < 0.0001) after adjustment for age, gender, and days after the second vaccination. High anti-RBD-IgG levels, being younger than 55 and being female, were all correlated with increased rates of ADRs. Conclusion: BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine reactogenicity appears to be correlated with higher post-vaccination antibody levels and is independently associated with younger age and female gender.

Keywords: BNT162b2; COVID-19; immunogenicity; reactogenicity; vaccination.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Adverse events rate after first and second vaccination (%).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Correlation between reactogenicity score and immunogenicity as measured with anti-RBD IgG (panel A) and neutralizing antibodies (panel B), Spearman correlation coefficient.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Polack F.P., Thomas S.J., Kitchin N., Absalon J., Gurtman A., Lockhart S., Perez J.L., Pérez Marc G., Moreira E.D., Zerbini C., et al. Safety and efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. N. Engl. J. Med. 2020;383:2603–2615. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2034577. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Menni C., Klaser K., May A., Polidori L., Capdevila J., Louca P., Sudre C.H., Nguyen L.H., Drew D.A., Merino J., et al. Vaccine side-effects and SARS-CoV-2 infection after vaccination in users of the COVID Symptom Study app in the UK: A prospective observational study. Lancet Infect. Dis. 2021;21:939–949. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(21)00224-3. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. D’Arminio Monforte A., Tavelli A., Perrone P.M., Za A., Razzini K., Tomasoni D., Bordoni V., Romanò L., Orfeo N., Marchetti G., et al. Association between previous infection with SARS CoV-2 and the risk of self-reported symptoms after mRNA BNT162b2 vaccination: Data from 3078 health care workers. eClinicalMedicine. 2021;36:100914. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2021.100914. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Barda N., Dagan N., Ben-Shlomo Y., Kepten E., Waxman J., Ohana R., Hernán M.A., Lipsitch M., Kohane I., Netzer D., et al. Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in a Nationwide Setting. N. Engl. J. Med. 2021;385:1078–1090. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2110475. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Koike R., Sawahata M., Nakamura Y., Nomura Y., Katsube O., Hagiwara K., Niho S., Masuda N., Tanaka T., Sugiyama K. Systemic Adverse Effects Induced by the BNT162b2 Vaccine Are Associated with Higher Antibody Titers from 3 to 6 Months after Vaccination. Vaccines. 2022;10:451. doi: 10.3390/vaccines10030451. - DOI - PMC - PubMed