Single case study cannot contest efficacy of vaccine

"One person's example should not be taken to declare that vaccine does not work." It's time social media stops coming up with assumptions that the vaccine is not successful. Such assumptions could create avoidable panic or doubts among people says former director of CCMB Dr Rakesh Mishra.

Referring to the recent case where the former chief secretary in the undivided Andhra Pradesh S V Prasad and his wife who had taken two doses of vaccine but could not survive, Dr Mishra said one should try to study and understand the reasons. "If a person gets affected by Covid twice or thrice it means that his or her immune system has badly failed, not the vaccine," he said.

Speaking to The Hans India, Dr Mishra said, "Only because of one or two person we cannot come to the conclusion that vaccine is not effective what about 20 crore people who have been vaccinated and benefited.

It is not the question of vaccine if a person gets infected twice or thrice that means the person is suffering from other complications.

Why people get protection from vaccine is that once a virus enters the body, it notes down the signature of the virus and makes an immune response, and next time if the virus enters the body, then the immune system would attack and not allow the virus to cause disease."

Explaining the causes, the scientist said if people are given vaccine and if it does not work then they have a problem in their immune system and maybe they were given immunosuppressant for some reason.

Another reason of reinfection can be a virus is very different in variant and causing the infection but this time Covid has not changed so much to cause reinfection. "There are people who will be re-infected and there are also people who would get infected after getting vaccinated, but they would not suffer much. But if somebody gets infected thrice after vaccination that means that person's immune system is not working.

In that case, we cannot do anything, and such cases are very rare," he said. "Vaccine is only to prepare your body to fight with the virus but the person's body should have the ability to respond to it well, that is why children are very strong as their immune system is very strong, old people are less strong as their immune system is weak.

So, one person's example should not be taken to declare that vaccine does not work," he clarified. He said vaccines were certified after three phases of trial and now crores of people are given the vaccine.

In countries like the UK, the US and Israel where massive vaccination drive was conducted their diseases have come down significantly. Even in India slowly the virus is coming under control due to vaccination, Dr Rakesh Mishra added.