Page 11 - Coronavirus

Covaxin has 'excellent record', says Bharat Biotech after study cites risks

The research conducted by BHU indicated that Covaxin increased the rare risk of stroke and Guillain-Barre syndrome, among other issues

Lapses in BHU research on Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin, says Bharat Biotech

Nearly 363 mn doses of Covaxin have been administered in India so far, second only to AstraZeneca-Serum Institute of India's Covishield

Over 30% Covaxin takers suffered from health issues after 1 year: BHU study

Nearly one-third of the individuals who received Bharat Biotech's anti-Covid vaccine Covaxin reported 'adverse events of special interest,' or AESI, according to a one-year follow up study conducted by a team of researchers at BHU. Nearly 50 per cent of 926 study participants in the study complained of infections during the follow-up period, predominated by viral upper respiratory tract infections. Serious AESI, which included stroke and Guillain-Barre syndrome, were reported in one per cent of individuals, the study, which looked at long-term safety of the BBV152 vaccine in adolescents and adults, claimed. Published in the journal Springer Nature, the study comes in the wake of UK pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca admitting its Covid vaccine can cause rare side-effects of blood clotting and lowering of platelet count in UK court. "Close to one third of the individuals developed AESIs. New-onset skin and subcutaneous disorders, general disorders, and nervous system disorders were th

After Covishield, new study 'finds' side effects in Covaxin recipients

In observational study on Bharat Biotech's Covaxin recipients, about one-third of participants reported adverse events

Rare blood clots from J&J and AstraZeneca Covid shots linked to genetics

Out of more than 18 million people who received the single-dose J&J vaccine, 60 cases of the clotting disorder were reported and nine people died, according to the Yale School of Medicine

Reliance Retail Ventures plans expanding in diagnostic healthcare: Report

Company said to be considering acquiring majority stake in dedicated diagnostic services firm

Does the country need to continue with Covid-19 vaccination drive?

Experts feel paid vaccine shots should continue to be available for elderly and comorbid

Pfizer, AstraZeneca announce new investments of nearly $1 bn in France

Their investment pledges came as President Emmanuel Macron prepared to kick off on Monday the annual 'Choose France' event aimed at wooing big overseas businesses and investors

Nations struggle to draft pandemic treaty to avoid mistakes made in Covid

After the coronavirus pandemic triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies and killed millions, leaders at the World Health Organisation and worldwide vowed to do better in the future. Years later, countries are still struggling to come up with an agreed-upon plan for how the world might respond to the next global outbreak. A ninth and final round of talks involving governments, advocacy groups and others to finalise a pandemic treaty is scheduled to end Friday. The accord's aim: guidelines for how the WHO's 194 member countries might stop future pandemics and better share scarce resources. But experts warn there are virtually no consequences for countries that don't comply. WHO's countries asked the UN health agency to oversee talks for a pandemic agreement in 2021. Envoys have been working long hours in recent weeks to prepare a draft ahead of a self-imposed deadline later this month: ratification of the accord at WHO's annual meeting. But deep divisions could derail ..

Novavax signs Covid-19 license deal with Sanofi, secures business viability

Novavax said it would co-commercialize its Covid-19 vaccine with French drugmaker Sanofi and develop new Covid-19-influenza combination vaccines using Novavax's Matrix-M adjuvant

Not producing, distributing Covishield since December 2021: Serum Institute

AstraZeneca Covid vaccine row: As of April 30, 2024, over 1.7 billion doses of the Covishield vaccine has been administered in India

Serum Institute responds for first time on Covishield amid safety row

Serum Institute of India says it stopped manufacturing Covishield since December 2021

FLiRT 2024: New group of Covid variants spreads in US; all you need to know

FLiRT, a group of new Covid variants in the Omicron JN.1 lineage, is spreading in the US. KP.2 and KP 1.1 are more infectious than earlier Omicron variants, which, however, have similar side effects

Indian Embassy in China holds meeting with students hit by Covid visa bans

The Indian Embassy here has held its first interactive session with the Indian students who suffered the most during the three-year COVID-19 period following China's visa bans prolonging their academic periods for several years. Around 80 old and new students from more than 13 Chinese universities took part in the welcome and interaction ceremony held on May 4. Indian Ambassador to China Pradeep Kumar Rawat, and Counsellor Nitinjeet Singh interacted with the students and heard their grievances and experiences during Saturday's meeting. The meeting also included a detailed presentation by Amit Sharma, Second Secretary (Education) on various services offered by the Embassy, Dos & Don'ts for students, the Embassy posting on X said. Until the coronavirus struck China in early 2020 over 23,000 Indian students mostly studying medicine in Chinese universities constituting the second-highest number of foreign students after Pakistan. Currently, the numbers reportedly come down to around .

Covaxin developed with focus on safety first, says Bharat Biotech

Bharat Biotech on Thursday asserted that its Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin is safe and devoid of any side-effects amid AstraZeneca's admission that Covishield could cause complications in rare cases. In a statement, the company stated that Covaxin was developed with a single-minded focus on safety first, followed by efficacy. The vaccine was evaluated in more than 27,000 subjects as part of its licensure process, Bharat Biotech stated. It was licensed under restricted use in clinical trial mode, where detailed safety reporting was carried out for several hundred thousand subjects, it noted. The vaccine was also evaluated by the Union Ministry of Health, it said. Besides, safety monitoring (pharmacovigilance) was continued throughout the product life cycle of Covaxin, it stated. All the above studies and safety follow-up activities have demonstrated an excellent safety record for Covaxin without any vaccine-associated incidents of blood clots, thrombocytopenia, TTS, VITT, pericarditis,

Why Covishield vaccine case doesn't qualify for medical negligence in India

Given the oversight of different regulatory bodies and that Covishield is produced locally by Serum Institute of India, Indian users may not be able to join the British lawsuit

Pregnancy-related deaths have fallen to pre-Covid levels, new US data shows

US pregnancy-related deaths have fallen back to pre-pandemic levels, new government data suggests. About 680 women died last year during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth, according to provisional CDC data. That's down from 817 deaths in 2022 and 1,205 in 2021, when it was the highest level in more than 50 years. COVID-19 seems to be the main explanation for the improvement, said Donna Hoyert, a Centres for Disease Control and Prevention maternal mortality researcher. The coronavirus can be particularly dangerous to pregnant women. And, in the worst days of the pandemic, burned out physicians may have added to the risk by ignoring pregnant women's worries, experts say. Fewer death certificates are mentioning COVID-19 as a contributor to pregnancy-related deaths. The count was over 400 in 2021 but fewer than 10 last year, Hoyert said. The agency on Thursday released a report detailing the final maternal mortality data for 2022. It also recently released provisional data for 202

U-WIN may allow mothers to track and report vaccine side-effects on babies

Similar to the CoWIN portal for covid-19, the government's U-WIN platform registers and tracks routine vaccination and immunisation

PM Modi missing from Covid certificates after Covishield row: Here's why

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed that PM Modi's photo was removed from Covid certificates due to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) in effect for the ongoing Lok Sabha polls

AstraZeneca admits Covishield has rare side effect: Is concern warranted?

AstraZeneca's acknowledgment that the vaccine may lead to thrombosis isn't a new revelation, but it underscores the need for transparent communication by the pharma companies, say experts