RESEARCH conducted in the UK has found that a disconnect between scientific discussions around the potential benefits and risks of vaccines versus long COVID and public health messaging can hinder trust, especially after unexpected or adverse vaccine experiences.

They emphasised the need for further research to identify who is most likely to benefit from vaccination and who may be at greater risk of worsening long COVID symptoms.

The team conducted 33 interviews with patients who had long COVID symptoms and had received a COVID vaccine.

Encouragingly, participants who had heard that the vaccine may worsen the condition were still keen to get the vaccine to help protect themselves and others against infection.

However, when it came to trust, patients who clearly attributed unwanted symptoms or exacerbation to vaccination did distrust the vaccine more, as did those who thought it would act as a treatment for long COVID.

The researchers said the findings have broader policy and practice implications, and reinforce the importance of clinicians taking concerns about unexpected vaccine responses seriously.

“Distrust builds when patients feel unheard or dismissed,” they wrote.

“Most participants in this study who experienced an adverse reaction wanted to continue with COVID vaccination but also wanted to understand the causality of their reactions so they could make an informed decision about trade-offs of protection versus worsening of long COVID.”

Read the study HERE.

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