Woman rushed to hospital after Johnson & Johnson vaccine, reported case to CDC

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Members of the CDC plan discuss what’s next for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week after putting the administration for the shot on pause. Health leaders want to see if more complications surface in connection to the vaccine after reports of rare blood clots in the brain. Now, a Columbus woman shows ABC6/FOX28 that she also self-reported her own bad reaction after the Johnson & Johnson shot which included an ambulance rushing her to the hospital.

"They asked me to stand up and we were going to go to a layout session,” said Jereatha Heriot who received her Johnson&Johnson vaccination late last month at a clinic in Westerville. “Within taking two steps, I passed out."

Nurses at the clinic called Heriot’s husband to let him know they were sending his wife to Saint Ann’s Hospital. There, medical records show Heriot was diagnosed with body weakness, anxiety, depression, major facial drooping, and fibromyalgia.

"My face was drooping to the right. I was losing feeling in my right arm as well as my leg,” said Heriot. “My speech was extremely slurred.”

Heriot soon left the intensive care unit and was transferred to more in-patient care for the next two weeks. There, doctors ordered occupational, physical, and speech therapy.

Now at home, Heriot tells ABC6/FOX28 that she must still use a walker but expects therapy to end in the next four weeks. Her medical chart now lists she had an allergic reaction to the Johnson & Johnson shot.. She made sure to report her case to the CDC.

“Anybody can report a potential concern or a reaction they think may have been related to the vaccine,” said Dr. Joseph Gastaldo with Ohio Health. “Any type of adverse reaction should be reported. It could be reported by the patient. It could be reported by anybody.”

Dr. Gastaldo who specializes in infectious disease said scientists need to know the adverse effects to any vaccine to identify trends. Ways to report include the “V-Safe” app made for someone’s smartphone and the VAERS website which stands for vaccine adverse effects reporting system.

This week, the VAERS site showed nearly 7,000 people reported symptoms after receiving the Johnson & Johnson shot which include abdominal pain, anxiety, chills, dizziness and loss of consciousness.

“Association is not always causation,” said Dr, Gastaldo. “Just because the rooster goes cock-a-doodle-doo every morning isn’t the reason the sun comes up.”

Heriot said she reported her case through the VAERS system but has yet to be contacted to provide more specifics.

https://wpde.com/news/coronavirus/woman-rushed-to-hospital-after-johnson-johnson-vaccine-reported