The Nuvaxovid (Novavax) vaccine has been provisionally approved for adults. To 29 May 2022, about 146,300 doses of Nuvaxovid (Novavax) have been administered in Australia. The TGA has received 726 reports of suspected adverse events. We are closely monitoring these reports. The most commonly reported reactions include chest pain, headache, fatigue, paraesthesia and dizziness.
Paraesthesia is an unusual feeling in the skin, such as tingling or a crawling sensation, and has also been reported for other COVID-19 vaccines. It is not known why paraesthesia sometimes occurs after vaccination, but it is thought it may be a stress-related response to immunisation rather than an immune reaction.
We have received a small number of reports of suspected myocarditis and/or pericarditis in people who have received the Nuvaxovid (Novavax) vaccine. After assessing these against a set of internationally accepted criteria, 3 cases were likely to represent myocarditis and 11 were likely to represent pericarditis. We are closely monitoring these reports and investigating whether there is an association between the Nuvaxovid (Novavax) vaccine and myocarditis and pericarditis. We will provide more information on this when the investigation is finalised.
In the AusVaxSafety survey, the most commonly reported reactions to Nuvaxovid (Novavax) are fatigue, injection-site reactions and headache. These are expected side effects that were also seen in clinical trials.
More information for Nuvaxovid (Novavax), including details about its ingredients and potential side effects, can be found in the Consumer Medicine Information (for consumers) and Product Information (for health professionals).
