According to reports, eight workers in a German nursing home were accidentally injected with five doses each of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.
The seven women and one man – ranging in age from 38 to 54 – work at the facility in the northeastern town of Stralsund, where they received the injections as part of a priority group, Agence France-Presse reported.
But when they were vaccinated on Sunday, they each received five doses at once, said Stefan Kerth, the administrator of the Vorpommern-Rügen district where the house is located.
Four of them were admitted to hospital for observation after developing mild flu-like symptoms, while the others were sent home.
“I deeply regret this incident,” said Kerth, who blamed the incident on human error. “I hope that all those affected will not experience serious side effects.”
The incident occurred after some German districts refused to use vaccines received over the weekend, because they suspected cold conditions were interrupted during labor, Reuters reported.
Ahead of the launch of vaccination campaigns in several European countries this weekend, German drug manufacturer BioNTech said larger-than-normal doses had been injected during studies without serious side effects.
The vaccine, which is designed to be administered in two injections, is supplied in vials each containing five doses, diluted once.
On Monday, a health ministry spokeswoman said the vials could each be used to deliver up to six doses.