A nurse in California tested positive for COVID-19 just one week after receiving the Pfizer vaccine.
The nurse, identified as Matthew W., received the first dose of vaccine on December 18 and had only a slight pain in his arms at the time.
Within six days, the 45-year-old began to experience chills, muscle aches and fatigue, all of which were identified as symptoms of coronavirus, according to a local ABC News station.
Matthew was working on a shift in his hospital’s COVID-19 unit the day he felt unwell and later tested for the virus, which he confirmed was positive, ABC News reported.
Infectious disease specialist Christian Ramers, who works with Family Health Centers in San Diego, told ABC KGTV that someone who has been vaccinated is not expected to contract the virus. He explained that it takes time for the vaccine to develop protection against COVID-19.
“We know from clinical trials about the vaccine that it will take about 10 to 14 days for you to start developing protection against the vaccine,” Ramers told reporters.
Ramers added that the first dose of vaccine does not provide complete protection against the virus on its own.
“The first dose we think gives somewhere around 50% and you need the second dose to get to 95%,” he said.
He further explained that it is possible that Matthew contracted the virus before receiving the first blow on December 18.
With an incubation period of the coronavirus of almost 14 days, he may not have started to show symptoms until after he has already been vaccinated, ABC News reported.
“You hear that health practitioners are very optimistic that this is the beginning of the end, but it will be a slow evolution, weeks to months, as we launch the vaccine,” Ramers said.
The vaccine began to spread slowly in the United States, with many recipients and health care workers being among the first to receive it.
Earlier this week, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris received the first dose of vaccine and encouraged Americans to get theirs once it became available.
“It simply came to our notice then. It happens very quickly. It’s safe, “she said at the time.
“It’s literally about saving lives,” she added. “I trust the scientists and the scientists created and approved this vaccine.”