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The benefits of Covid vaccines are far greater than the risk attached to the vaccines, a senior WHO official has said. “The risk of the COVID infection itself, which was killed more than 2.6 million people globally is much higher. The benefit of the vaccine outweighs the normal risk.” WHO Assistant Director General Dr. Mariangela Simao said on Wednesday.
She was speaking following the death of a 27 year old nurse in Georgia who received the Astra Zeneca Covid vaccine .
The nurse died of anaphylaxis, which is a very severe and allergic reaction to a component of the vaccine, said WHO’s Deputy Director-General for Programmes, Dr. Soumya Swaminathan.
Swaminathan suggested medical personnel take prudent precautions before the vaccination and closely observe previous anaphylaxis patients who received the vaccine for about 30 minutes after the vaccination.
WHO had earlier warned that if a person had a history of anaphylaxis with a previous dose of the same vaccine, he or she advised not to take the vaccine.
Georgian Health Minister Ekaterine Tikaradze announced that the State Regulation Agency for Medical Activities would publish an investigation report on this nurse’s death this week. Tikaradze also expressed her willingness to take AstraZeneca vaccine to the media.
On the same day the nurse was vaccinated, AstraZeneca company published a press release, stating the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA) confirmed that AstraZeneca vaccine was safe and effective.
