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As India grapples with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the
government continues to work toward making coronavirus vaccine widely available
for everyone. Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, AstraZeneca’s Covishield manufactured by
Serum Institute of India, and Russian Sputnik V are the three vaccines being
used in India. Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan had said that India will be able
to inoculate all adults by the end of this year.
Experts have been stressing that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective at
keeping you from getting COVID-19, adding that individuals who have been fully
vaccinated can resume activities that they did prior to the pandemic. In this
article, doctors at Fortis Hospital, Mulund, answer some of the key questions
about COVID-19 vaccines, including how you can get your shot and how long you
will be protected from the virus with these vaccines.
Where should I register for COVID-19 vaccination and how do I get the
vaccine?
If you are eligible to receive the vaccine, you can register yourself on the
Co-WIN Portal and schedule your appointment. You can get the vaccine from
government and private health facilities as notified, known as COVID Vaccination
Centres (CVCs).
Can COVID-19 vaccine cause coronavirus infection? What to expect after
getting COVID-19 shot?
A COVID-19 vaccine does not cause COVID-19 infection. Typically, it takes a few
weeks for your body to build immunity after vaccination. So, if a person has
symptoms soon after taking the vaccine, that’s because he or she may have been
exposed to the virus before (but without symptoms) or during the trip outside
for vaccination.
After getting a COVID-19 vaccine, you may have some common side effects such as
fever, pain or redness or swelling at the injection site, chills, tiredness,
nausea, etc, which are normal signs that your body is building immunity or
protection against the virus. However, you should contact your doctor or
healthcare provider if the side effects such as pain or redness where the shot
was given gets worse after 24 hours.
How long will I be protected from COVID-19 after vaccination?
At this point of time, we do not know how long a person will be protected from
the virus that causes COVID-19 with these vaccines. Scientists are still
learning how long the vaccines can protect people from the virus. However,
vaccines that use the Oxford ChAdOx1 technology are proven to provide immune
responses persisting for a year or more.
Do the COVID-19 vaccines work against emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2?
A study published in a peer-reviewed medical journal Clinical Infectious
Diseases showed that Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin can neutralise all key emerging
variants of SARS-CoV-2, including the double mutant strain called B.1.617 first
identified in Maharashtra. Similarly, Serum Institute’s Covishield has been
found to effectively work against the fast-spreading double mutant coronavirus
strain as well. Yet, medical researchers and scientists are still learning how
effective the COVID-19 vaccines are against new variants of SARS-CoV-2. Experts
are also still trying to figure out how well these vaccines can prevent people
from spreading the coronavirus to others (even if they do not have the symptoms
of COVID-19), although early data suggests that vaccinated people are less
likely to transmit infection to others.
Do I still need to get the vaccine if I have already had COVID-19 and
recovered? What about a person who is currently sick with COVID-19 or suspected
to be suffering from coronavirus infection?
Regardless of whether you already had COVID-19, it is advisable to get
vaccinated against the virus to help develop a strong immune response against
the disease. The Indian Health Ministry’s guidelines suggest that one should
wait for 12 weeks after recovery from COVID-19 symptoms before getting the shot.
According to the CDC’s COVID-19 guidance, you should wait 90 days before getting
a vaccine if you had been treated for COVID-19 with monoclonal antibodies or
convalescent plasma therapy. Plasma therapy has been recently dropped from the
recommended COVID-19 treatment guidelines in India.
As per the Health Ministry, people with confirmed or suspected COVID-19
infection should defer vaccination for 14 days after symptoms are resolved.
It may be noted that a vaccine is one of many tools required to control the
COVID-19 pandemic. So, whether or not you have received the vaccine, you need to
continue to adhere to public health measures - such as wearing a mask, frequent
and thorough hand washing, following social distancing rules, etc, - to protect
yourself and others.
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