By George Jacob

Kochi, May 12, 2024: Covid-19 pandemic is done and dusted. Seemingly. Though massive killer waves of the viral infection triggered by mutants seem to have abated, stray cases of the viral respiratory infection are still being reported, with negligible mortality though.

‘A cluster of highly infectious respiratory infection with high mortality’ was reported in China’s Wuhan Province in December 2019. Soon this strange infection, which the WHO baptized ‘Covid-19’, crossed the Great Wall, taking the world by storm. WHO declared it a pandemic. 704,753,890 were infected. 7,010,681 perished globally, as per statistics updated by WHO on April 13 this year.

The wily virus which had scant respect for personalities, geographical regions, economic and military might of nations, color and faith had the medical world scurrying to explore prevention and treatment.

As treatment modalities emerged by fits and start mankind continued to be infected. Many perished falling to viral mutants that caused waves of the deadly infection. Livelihood and economies were wrecked. Clueless governments attempted to keep the virus away from citizens through lockdowns and the SMS protocol.

Physicians considered prevention using vaccines against SARS-CoV-2, the viral villain more fruitful than treatment. But, the gestation time for a vaccine to be developed and authorized for human use after mandatory phase III trials is 10 years. Governments could not wait for 10 years for vaccines when citizens were succumbing in large numbers.

Pharmaceutical companies worked overtime and rolled out ‘vaccines’ in a jiffy. Governments permitted use of these half-baked vaccines on their citizens without mandatory clinical trials out of desperation on Emergency Use Basis. The emergent nature of the pandemic eating up lives demanded, and justified such a move by governments when the pandemic raged.

India was no exception. The country depended on two vaccines- Covishield, developed by British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University, and Covaxin, manufactured and developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research. These two were permitted for human use by the Indian government on Emergency Use Basis.

Very soon, signs of the pandemic abating in terms of infections and mortality were evident. Jumping the gun to hang medallions on these vaccines was not without attendant drawbacks;
• Due to dearth of proper clinical trials, the medical community couldn’t, with scientific certainty attribute signs of waning of infection to vaccines. Waning infection could also be attributed to development of herd immunity (immunity acquired from natural infection), and varying pathogenicity of viral mutants. While the delta mutant was the villain of the piece contributing to large share of deaths globally, the more infective Omicron mutant wasn’t as deadly as its Delta counterpart.
• It could also have the medical community, without scientific evidence attribute adverse events that might be reported in future to the vaccines, leaving mistaken sinners to be stoned. Overenthusiastic Government heads basked in the vaccine success by employing inadequately tested vaccines to douse the pandemic cauldron. They overdid vaccine administration on their citizens by arm-twisting them to receive the shots, making vaccine certificates compulsory for travel and other crucial purposes. The then Australian Premier banning Novac Djokovic from competing in the Australian Open for refusing Covid vaccine hasn’t been forgotten.
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Government heads made vaccines convenient political tools to reserve a place for themselves under the vaccine arc lights on world stage. The Indian Prime Minister even had his photograph printed on vaccine certificates, when the certificates ought to be carrying the vaccinees’ photographs. India manufactured vaccines in excess of the nation’s needs exporting them to other nations. The Indian head of state soon adorned the garb of global ‘vaccine messiah,’ making political mileage out of self-declared ‘vaccine miracle.’

As abatement of the pandemic coincided with large-scale compulsory use of the vaccines, it was widely made to believe by government PR overdrive that the virus beat a hasty retreat, scared away by the vaccines. Though numerous breakthrough infections (infections in the vaccinated) were reported.

Though scientists credited the vaccines with the retreat of the virus, the fact is, the pandemic death dance could well have ended due to herd immunity and differences in pathogenicity of various viral mutants.

Covid-19 pandemic is almost over. Yesterday’s vaccine ‘hero’ turned villain as abruptly as it was crowned ‘knight in shining armor’.

AstraZeneca recently decided to globally withdraw its vaccine Covishield, as it is known in India and as Vaxzevria in the UK.

The withdrawal comes after AstraZeneca acknowledged in court documents that it’s vaccine can cause a dangerous side effect called TTS- Thrombosis Thrombocytopenia Syndrome, an entity in which blood clots form to abruptly deny vital organs of blood supply to cause strokes, heart attacks, and intestinal gangrene- all of which can kill.

TTS has been associated with at least 81 deaths in the UK, along with serious clot-related injuries. AstraZeneca faces lawsuits from over 50 alleged victims and the bereaved in various courts.

Following voluntary withdrawal of marketing authorization, the vaccine is no longer authorized for use in the EU. Australia too has banned its use.

Similar fate is expected to befall other vaccines with possible adverse effects if they emerge. The fact is these deadly side effects would have shown up on proper clinical trials, had they been conducted before permitting use of Covid vaccines for human use. Had they waited for the gestation period of 10 years for vaccines.

As Covishield, which has been credited for saving millions stands in the judgment box like a habitual lawbreaker, who is to blame? Certainly not AstraZeneca and Oxford University who developed it.

Governments who arm-twisted its unsuspecting citizens to receive half-baked ‘vaccines’, making political agenda and photo-ops, and one-liners out of it, for political and personal gain are to blame. They must admit their mistake, stop overzealous vaccine trumpeting, and make amends by adequately compensating vaccine victims.

(Doctor George Jacob is Consultant Surgical Gastroenterologist, Lakeshore Hospital, Kochi, Kerala.)