The Washington State Department of Health has brought the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in to look into more than a dozen cases of a rare heart problem among Washingtonians, especially younger people, who were recently vaccinated.

But state health officials insist bringing in CDC officials was out of “aggressive caution” and do not right now see any link between the vaccine and the heart complication.

“We are very, very early in this investigation, and I don’t have any certainty that this is cause-and-effect,” said state epidemiologist Dr. Scott Lindquist during the department’s weekly briefing on Wednesday.

According to a state Department of Health press release, a “small number” of Washingtonians — the department did not specify how many at its briefing — reported myocarditis or pericarditis after getting the inoculation. Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart tissue, while pericarditis refers to inflammation of the protective membrane around the heart.

But state health officials insist bringing in CDC officials was out of “aggressive caution” and do not right now see any link between the vaccine and the heart complication.

“We are very, very early in this investigation, and I don’t have any certainty that this is cause-and-effect,” said state epidemiologist Dr. Scott Lindquist during the department’s weekly briefing on Wednesday.

According to a state Department of Health press release, a “small number” of Washingtonians — the department did not specify how many at its briefing — reported myocarditis or pericarditis after getting the inoculation. Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart tissue, while pericarditis refers to inflammation of the protective membrane around the heart.

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