ANKARA

Health authorities in Norway on Monday said they found no evidence of a direct link between the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and elderly deaths.

"Based on these reports we cannot rule out that common adverse reactions, such as fever and nausea, may contribute to a more serious course and fatal outcome in some frail patients with severe underlying diseases," said Sigurd Hortemo, a chief physician at the Norwegian Medicines Agency.

But the Norwegian health authorities advised an evaluation regarding “frail or terminally ill patients”, to decide whether the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks of side effects.

“The reported cases have had no impact on the Norwegian vaccination strategy,” a written statement by Norwegian Medicines Agency also added.

Last week, Norwegian Medicines Agency announced at least 23 elderly people who received Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shots have died in Norway, saying 13 of the fatalities possibly were linked to the vaccine’s side effects, such as fever and nausea.

This raised alarms throughout the world about the vaccine's side effects.

More than 48,000 people have so far received a dose in the country, according to data by UK-based tracker OurWorldInData.

Latest figures show Norway’s virus caseload currently stands at 59,034, including 521 fatalities.