Covid-19 vaccines are safe & effective

It is normal to have concerns over any new product in the market, and especially when the product is related to human health directly. This was stated by Dr Zaid bin al Khatab al Hinai, Assistant Professor and a Consultant of Infectious Diseases for Children at the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University. “This is why there are rumours in the social media about the efficacy of AstraZeneca vaccine for which people, especially the elderly, hesitate to take.” He assured that scientists agreed on the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine. “The biggest concern is to get infected with the Covid-19 virus, so it is better to get vaccinated as soon as it is available,” he said during a TV interview. He said that most of the European countries, which have suspended vaccination with AstraZeneca, decided to move on with it because it is safe and there is no scientific evidence between serious symptoms or deaths that occurred in these countries and the vaccine. “The temporary suspension of AstraZeneca is to analyse the details of deaths occurred in some European countries, and see if there is a link between them and the vaccine.” The number of those who got vaccinated in the Sultanate reached about 90,000, which constitutes 2 per cent of the total population. “We hope that more numbers will be covered quickly, with new batches of vaccines expected in the coming weeks’’, the doctor said. Earlier, the Ministry of Health has that the temporary suspension of AstraZeneca vaccine by some countries was a precautionary measure taken by them to investigate some cases of blood clots observed in some of those who received the vaccine, calling on all target groups to quickly take the vaccine, and not to believe in rumours and get information from reliable official sources. It said that no serious side effects have been recorded for vaccines used in Oman against Covid-19 disease till date. NO DIRECT LINK Experts who argue that the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University is safe — and certainly safer than getting Covid-19 — circled their wagons on Tuesday, but not before more countries suspended the jab. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) — which approved the vaccine in January — remains convinced of the safety of AstraZeneca’s product, the organisation’s chief said on Tuesday. Stressing on the safety of Covid-19 vaccines used in Oman, the ministry said there is no preference among the vaccines currently used in Oman in terms of efficacy and safety. Moreover, these vaccines were selected by a specialised technical team that studies vaccines from all aspects based on published studies in prestigious scientific journals as well as recommendations issued by international organisations. “A situation like this is not unexpected’’, Executive Director Emer Cooke said, referring to several cases of blood clots that had reportedly developed following an injection. “When you vaccinate millions of people, it’s inevitable that you have rare or serious incidences of illnesses that occur after vaccination.” Fear has been spreading about the jab as more countries report incidences of blood clots in people after receiving a vaccination. The fears have grown to the point where several European countries have shelved the product, complicating already troubled vaccination drives. The rate of reported blood clots amongst vaccinated people seemed to broadly mirror the rate in the general population, Cooke explained. The agency had also received similar numbers from other vaccines from across the world, she said. However, EMA had launched a “very rigorous analysis” to determine whether the vaccines might have caused the events, she said.