Norwegian authorities have announced that COVID-19 vaccines may be too risky for people past a certain age who are frail.
The statement comes as European countries move to vaccinate their citizens against the virus, which has been ravaging the world for over a year now, and to gauge any potential side effects of inoculation.
Some 23 people in Norway were reported dead shortly after receiving their Pfizer/BioNTech jab, with the WHO making clear its intent to follow the investigation of these deaths closely, as a representative of the organisation told Sputnik.
The results of autopsies conducted on 13 of the deceased suggest that "common side effects may have contributed to severe reactions in frail, elderly people," Bloomberg claims, citing the Norwegian Medicines Agency.
"For those with the most severe frailty, even relatively mild vaccine side effects can have serious consequences," the Norwegian Institute of Public Health said. "For those who have a very short remaining life span anyway, the benefit of the vaccine may be marginal or irrelevant."
Denmark started its mass vaccination with the Pfizer vaccine on 27 December – retirement home residents and medical staff in Oslo were the first recipients.
So far, all fatal cases involving the vaccination have involved people over 80 who were weak, government-owned broadcaster NRK reports.
Meanwhile, 21 cases of severe allergic reactions were reported by authorities in the United States between 14-23 December after about 1.9 million initial doses of the vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE were administered.