Utilizing wearable sensors for continuous and highly-sensitive monitoring of reactions to the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine

BACKGROUND: Clinical trial guidelines for assessing the safety of vaccines, are primarily based on self-reported questionnaires. Despite the tremendous technological advances in recent years, objective, continuous assessment of physiological measures post-vaccination is rarely performed. METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational study during the mass vaccination campaign in Israel. 160 participants >18 years who were not previously found to be COVID-19 positive and who received the BNT162b2 COVID-19 (Pfizer BioNTech) vaccine were equipped with an FDA-approved chest-patch sensor and a dedicated mobile application. The chest-patch sensor continuously monitored 13 different cardiovascular, and hemodynamic vitals: heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, pulse pressure, mean arterial pressure, heart rate variability, stroke volume, cardiac output, cardiac index, systemic vascular resistance and skin temperature. The mobile application collected daily self-reported questionnaires on local and systemic reactions. RESULTS: We identify continuous and significant changes following vaccine administration in nearly all vitals. Markedly, these changes are observed even in presumably asymptomatic participants who did not report any local or systemic reaction. Changes in vitals are more apparent at night, in younger participants, and in participants following the second vaccine dose. CONCLUSION: the considerably higher sensitivity of wearable sensors can revolutionize clinical trials by enabling earlier identification of abnormal reactions with fewer subjects.