FDA says majority of deaths after inoculation unrelated to COVID-19 vaccines
MANILA, Philippines — The country’s Food and Drug Administration reported Friday that 24 people died out of over one million individuals who got vaccinated against COVID-19, but it stressed that most of them had pre-existing illnesses.
In a briefing, FDA Director General Eric Domingo said that 19 of the reported deaths are coincidental or unrelated to vaccination.
“Most of them are not related to vaccination, and definitely, vaccination benefits outweigh the risks,” FDA Director General Eric Domingo said in a briefing.
Of the 24 deaths, 11 contracted COVID-19. According to the US Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention, it typically takes two weeks after a person is fully vaccinated for the body to build protection or immunity against SARS-CoV-2, or the virus that causes COVID-19.
Eight of the reported deaths after inoculation had cardiovascular or cerebrovascular illness, and three died from other infectious disease. Two cases, meanwhile, are pending review.
Ten of the fatalities received CoronaVac shots, while 14 got AstraZeneca vaccines.
Of the 497,837 people injected with CoronaVac, only 1.41% experienced adverse events following immunization. Meanwhile, only 3.47% of the 508,674 people who received AstraZeneca shots had side effects.
Domingo said the most common side effects include pain in the vaccination site, fever, headache, chills, body pain and rashes.
The Philippines has administered 1,562,563 as of April 20. Broken down, 1,353,107 have been afforded partial protection after getting their first doses of either AstraZeneca or Sinovac vaccines, while 209,456 have been fully vaccinated.
The government is aiming to inoculate up to 70 million people this year.
The country has so far recorded 971,049 COVID-19 cases, of which 107,988 are active. The severe respiratory disease claimed the lives of 16,370 people.
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