Disease Control Authorities, "No Deaths Due to Vaccines Reported Overseas. No Need to Be Anxious"

[경향신문]

On March 3, a 119 paramedic of the Yeoju Fire Department receives the AstraZeneca vaccine to prevent the transmission of the novel coronavirus at the Yeoju-si Public Health Center in Gyeonggi-do. Yonhap News

On March 3, disease control authorities launched an investigation on two deaths following COVID-19 vaccination to see if there was any connection between the vaccines and the deaths. The authorities said, “So far, there has been no death due to the vaccine reported in other countries,” and asked the public not to be overly worried.

This day, the COVID-19 vaccination response team announced, “So far a total of 209 cases of allergic reactions (following inoculation) have been reported, and among them two have died, which we are currently investigating.” Among the cases reported, 204 were of mild symptoms such as headache, fever, nausea and vomiting, which are common after vaccination. The other three cases may be anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction.

The two people who died this day were a man in his fifties and a sixty-something man. Both were receiving treatment in a care hospital for existing illnesses. Both received the AstraZeneca vaccine, but one died a day after receiving the vaccine, and the other after four days. Both showed symptoms of chest pain, nausea, trouble breathing, fever and muscular pain throughout the entire body.

Disease control authorities plan to determine the causal relations based on the result of epidemiological surveys by a team investigating the damages. First, authorities will check and see if other people who received the vaccine with the same serial number showed similar symptoms with those who died in order to see if there were any problems with the vaccine. They will also check if the people who received the vaccine in the same hospital on the same day showed any allergic reactions to see if there were any problems in the process of administering the vaccine. Then they will comprehensively review various factors, such as what clinical symptoms the patients showed, the doctors’ findings after examining the patients, and see if the cause of their death could be explained by any other factor to determine the causal relation. Jung Eun-kyeong (head of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency), head of the vaccination response team said, “We will transparently release the results of the investigation by the damage investigation team as soon as they are ready.”

It is hard to blame the vaccine for the death just because a person died after receiving the vaccine. Given that both the dead patients had suffered from existing illnesses and that 5-7 deaths occurred on a monthly basis in the care hospital where they were hospitalized, their deaths may have nothing to do with the vaccination. For example, in the case of influenza vaccines, as of March 1, a total of 13.7 million people received the vaccine in the 2020-2021 season, and among them 2,081 people reported allergic reactions including 110 deaths. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency investigated the deaths and concluded, “We cannot acknowledge any causal relation with the vaccine in all the fatal cases.” The majority of the deaths occurred among older adults aged 70 and older and the cause of their deaths were other factors, such as existing diseases.

In other countries, a considerable number of deaths have been reported following their COVID-19 vaccination, but authorities have yet to confirm any relation with the vaccines. In the U.K. as of February 14, a total of 402 people have been reported dead after receiving the vaccine. In Germany, 105 were reported (as of January 31), Norway 93 (as of February 23), and France 171 (as of February 18).

Among the allergic reactions that occurred in people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine, the vaccination response team sorted three cases as anaphylactoid reactions. The symptoms are similar to anaphylaxis, which is an acute severe allergic reaction caused by an immune reaction, but they lack evidence of the immune reaction. The vaccination response team said, “Symptoms, such as trouble breathing and hives occurred within two hours of receiving the vaccine, and at present, we have not confirmed any causal relations with all three cases and the vaccination.” The team also said, “Two have recovered and returned home and we are monitoring the third patient.” Authorities plan to analyze whether or not there was any effect of the Immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibody to determine whether or not these cases actually are anaphylaxis.

Disease control authorities describe all symptoms and diseases that occur following the vaccination as “allergic reactions.” Pain in the area where the vaccine was administered, fever, muscular pain, nausea, vomiting, and dizziness are referred to as general light symptoms. Anaphylaxis is sorted into anaphylaxis, anaphylactoid reaction, and the most serious, anaphylactic shock depending on the symptoms and their severity. All serious allergic reactions reported in connection with the COVID-19 vaccine throughout the world have been anaphylaxis in a broad sense.

Jung said, “Globally, there has been no report of serious allergic reactions other than anaphylaxis, so we believe vaccines that are fairly safe are being administered.” She also said, “We ask the people who are to receive the vaccine not to worry too much and receive the vaccine when their turn comes while taking precautions before and after inoculation.”