Is blood clotting common after taking COVID-19 vaccination
New Delhi, June 08: Can people with allergies get vaccinated ? Can pregnant women take Covid 19 vaccine? What about lactating mothers ? Do I get enough antibodies after getting vaccinated ? Is blood clotting common after taking the vaccine shots ?
If I have contracted Covid, after how many days can I get myself vaccinated ?
These are some of the frequently asked questions people raise about Covid vaccination. Dr. V K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog and Dr. Randeep Guleria, Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences have addressed various doubts people have regarding COVID-19 vaccines in a special programme on DD News on Sunday the 6th June.
Can people with Allergies get Vaccinated?
Dr. Paul: If someone has a significant allergy problem, then COVID vaccine should be taken only after medical advice. However, if it is only a question of minor allergies like getting common cold, skin allergies, etc., one should not hesitate to take the vaccine.
Dr. Guleria: Those on prior medication for allergies should not stop these, they should continue to take the medication regularly while getting themselves vaccinated. It is also important to understand that arrangements have been made at all vaccination sites for management of allergies arising due to vaccination. Hence, we advise that even if you happen to have a severe allergy, you keep taking the medication and go and get yourself vaccinated.
Can pregnant women take COVID-19 vaccine?
Dr. Paul: As per our current guidelines (read PIB press release dated 19th May 2021- https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1719925 ) vaccination should not be given to pregnant women. The reason for this is that a decision recommending vaccination to pregnant women could not be taken by doctors and the scientific community based on available data from vaccine trials. However, the Government of India will clarify this situation in a few days, based on new scientific inputs.
It is being found that many COVID-19 vaccines are being found safe for pregnant women; we hope the route should open for our two vaccines as well. We request the public to be a little more patient, especially considering that the vaccines have been developed in a very short span of time, and pregnant women are not usually included in the initial trials, due to safety concerns.
Dr. Guleria: Many countries have begun vaccination for pregnant women. The US FDA has given approval for Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. Data regarding COVAXIN and COVISHIELD will also come soon; some data is already available, and we hope that in a few days, we hope to get the full required data and grant approval for vaccinating pregnant women in India too.
Can breastfeeding mothers take COVID-19 Vaccine?
Dr.
Paul:
There
is
a
very
clear
guideline
regarding
this
the
vaccine
is
absolutely
safe
for
lactating
mothers.
There
is
no
need
for
any
fear.
There
is
no
need
to
stop
or
pause
breastfeeding
either
before
or
after
vaccination.
(https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1719925),
Do I get enough antibodies after getting vaccinated ?
Dr. Guleria: It is important to understand that we should not judge the efficacy of vaccines only by the amount of antibodies getting generated. Vaccines give many types of protection - such as through antibodies, cell-mediated immunity and memory cells (whichgenerate more antibodies when we get infected). Moreover, the efficacy results which have come so far are based on trial studies, where the study design of each trial is somewhat different.
Data
available
till
now
shows
clearly
that
efficacy
of
all
vaccines
-
whether
COVAXIN,
COVISHIELD
or
Sputnik
V
-
are
more
or
less
equivalent.
We
should
not
hence
say
take
this
vaccine
or
that
vaccine,
whichever
vaccine
is
available
in
your
area,
please
go
ahead
and
get
yourself
vaccinated
so
that
you
and
your
family
are
safe.
Dr. Paul: Some people seem to be thinking of getting an antibody test done post vaccination. But that is not required to be done for the simple fact that antibodies alone do not indicate the immunity of a person. This is so because of T-cells or memory cells; these undergo certain changes when we receive the vaccine, they become stronger and gain resistance power. And T-Cells are not detected by antibody tests as these are found in bone marrow. Hence, our appeal is to not fall in the tendency of doing antibody tests either before or after getting vaccinated, take the vaccine which is available, take both doses at the right time and follow COVID Appropriate Behaviour. Also, people should not be under the false notion that the vaccine is not required if you have had COVID-19.
Is blood clotting common after taking the vaccine shots ?
Dr. Paul: A few cases of this complication did come to the fore, particularly with regard to Astra-Zeneca Vaccine. This complication occurred in Europe where this risk was seen to be present to some extent in their younger population due to their lifestyle, body and genetic structure. But, I would like to assure you that we have systematically examined this data in India and found that such blood-clotting incidents are almost negligible here - so negligible that one need not worry about it. In European countries, these complications were found to be almost 30 times more than that in our country.
Dr. Guleria: It has been seen earlier also that blood clotting after surgery occurs less in Indian population in comparison to that in US and European populations. This side-effect, named as Vaccine induced Thrombosis or Thrombocytopenia, is very rare in India, found to occur in a much lesser proportion than in Europe. Hence, there is no need to be scared of this. Treatments also are available for this, which can be adopted, if diagnosed early.
If I have contracted Covid, after how many days can I get myself vaccinated ?
Dr. Guleria: The latest guidelines clearly state that a person who caught COVID-19 can take the vaccineafter three months from the day of recovery Doing this will help the body develop stronger immunity and the effect of the vaccine will be better. (https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1719925).
Both
the
experts
-
Dr.
Paul
and
Dr
Guleria
also
asserted
and
reassured
that
our
vaccines
are
effective
on
the
mutants
which
have
been
seen
in
India
till
date.
They
also
termed
as
fake
and
unfounded
the
rumours
circulating
on
social
media
that
our
immune
system
becomes
weak
after
taking
vaccines
or
people
die
after
taking
vaccines,
a
wrong
belief
held
by
some
people
in
rural
areas
and
remote
blocks.