Q. What is the dosing schedule of Covishield Vaccine?
As per the permission granted by the Drug Controller General (India), the second dose of Covishield Vaccine is to be administered 4-12 weeks after the first dose.
Q. Does vaccination with Covishield Vaccine protect me against newer strains/mutated versions of COVID-19 virus?
Yes. All vaccines are expected to provide a reasonable amount of protection against the newer strains/mutated versions of the COVID-19 virus also. The body responds to vaccination by making more than one type of antibodies, that effectively destroy the virus. Based on the currently available data, the mutations as reported, are unlikely to make the vaccine ineffective and protect an individual against COVID-19 effectively.
Q. Which vaccine is better, Covishield Vaccine or Covaxin?
There is no comparison done between the two, Covishield Vaccine or Covaxin being used in India, so one cannot say which is better. Both the vaccines are effective in preventing the COVID-19 infection in all who take it, particularly, elderly people or those who have comorbidities such as diabetes or hypertension (high blood pressure).
Q. In how many days will Covishield Vaccine create an adequate amount of antibodies to protect me against COVID-19?
It usually takes 2-3 weeks after completion of the entire vaccination schedule, i.e., after the second dose of Covishield Vaccine or Covaxin, whichever has been administered to you.
Q. What are the expected side effects of Covishield Vaccine?
Covishield Vaccine may show mild side effects like injection site tenderness or pain, headache, fatigue, myalgia (muscle pain), malaise, fever, chills, joint pain, and nausea. Very rarely, a few events of demyelinating disorders have been reported following vaccination with this vaccine but without the causal relationship establishment.
Q. Who should not take Covishield Vaccine?
Individuals with a history of anaphylactic or allergic reaction to a previous dose of COVID-19 vaccine or any injectable therapies, pharmaceutical products, food items, etc, should not take Covishield Vaccine. Additionally, pregnant and lactating women have not been part of any COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial so far. Therefore, women who are pregnant or not sure of their pregnancy and lactating (breastfeeding) women should not receive the COVID-19 vaccine at this time. However, consult your doctor if you are not sure.
Q. Is it safe for a person suffering from hypertension/diabetes/chronic kidney disease/heart disease/lipid disorders etc., to take Covishield Vaccine?
Absolutely. Covishield Vaccine is safe and effective in adults with comorbidities such as hypertension/diabetes/chronic kidney disease/heart disease/lipid disorders, etc. The maximum benefit of getting Covishield Vaccine is for those who have such comorbidities. However, if you are concerned for any specific reason, please consult your doctor.
Q. What are the storage or transportation conditions needed for Covishield Vaccine?
Covishield Vaccine needs to be stored and transported at 2⁰ to 8⁰ Celsius. The cold chain for Covishield Vaccine is maintained through active and passive cold chain equipment available at approximately 29,000 cold chain points across India.
Q. How do I register myself online for an appointment for vaccination?
Online registration and appointment can be done through the Co-WIN portal. You will have to give some basic information about yourself and details of your photo identification card to get yourself registered online. From one mobile phone number, one can register 4 people, however, each person will need their photo identification document.
Q. What if I haven't pre-registered online? Can I still get vaccinated?
Yes. You can still get vaccinated even if you haven’t pre-registered online. Please ask your nearest Government healthcare worker to guide you about the nearest COVID-19 Vaccination Centre (CVC) where COVID vaccination will be available and the days of the week when this will be available. You need to carry your mobile phone and a photo identification document to get yourself vaccinated. The workers in the CVC will help you to register on the spot, get an appointment, and get vaccinated on the same day.
Q. Has Covishield Vaccine undergone the necessary clinical trials before granting EUA?
Yes. Covishield Vaccine has undergone the necessary clinical trials before granting EUA.
Q. What is Emergency Use Authorization?
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) or permission for restricted use is a declaration issued by Indian regulators in alignment with global guidelines, to use certain vaccines, medicines, or devices to diagnose, treat or prevent a serious medical condition (such as COVID-19 in the current scenario) in case there is an outbreak of such an illness that poses threat to public health. Regulatory authorities may not approve the use of any such medical measures but may still allow it to be used against the illness weighing the benefits against the risks involved. However, there are continuous lab assessments and clinical trials to check on the safety, effectiveness, and quality of the vaccines.
Q. Which COVID-19 vaccines are granted emergency use authorization in India?
Five vaccines that have been granted emergency use authorization by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) in India are Covishield (AstraZeneca's vaccine, manufactured by Serum Institute of India), Covaxin (manufactured by Bharat Biotech Limited), Sputnik V (Russia's vaccine, being manufactured by Dr. Reddy's laboratories in India), Moderna (US vaccine being imported by Cipla, India) and the most recent being Johnson and Johnson’s single dose Covid-19 Vaccine.<br>
Q. What is COVID-19?
Coronavirus disease 2019, better known as COVID-19, is an illness of the lungs caused by a virus called SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2), which is seen to infect humans for the very first time. COVID-19 is a highly infectious viral disease that spreads from one person to another at a very fast pace. Persons suffering from COVID-19 are likely to have breathing difficulties, fever, and cough as the major symptoms.
Q. Can Covishield Vaccine be given to children?
Covishield Vaccine trials for children are still underway. So, enough evidence is not available to recommend its use in children yet. This is because the morbidity and mortality rate is higher in the older population, particularly those older than 50 years of age. Both the available vaccines, Covishield Vaccine as well as Covaxin have not been studied for safety and effectiveness in the children/pediatric population so far. Therefore, it is advised not to give any COVID-19 vaccine to children till we have enough data available.
Q. I am a COVID-19 frontline worker and I got vaccinated already. When will my family members get vaccinated?
As per government of India guidelines, all the COVID-19 frontline workers will get vaccinated on priority. However, the other family members of these people will be vaccinated according to the age-specific prioritization by the Government of India.
Q. I already got infected with COVID-19 once. Do I still need to get vaccinated?
Yes. People who have already been infected with COVID-19 should still get vaccinated unless told otherwise by their healthcare provider. Even if you’ve had a previous infection, the vaccine acts as a booster that strengthens the immune response. There have also been some cases of people getting re-infected with COVID-19, which makes getting vaccinated even more important.
Q. What is the dosing schedule of Covishield Vaccine?
As per the permission granted by the Drug Controller General (India), the second dose of Covishield Vaccine is to be administered 12-16 weeks after the first dose. This is because, the protection offered by the vaccine increased to 79% if the second dose was given at least 12 weeks after the first dose. While it was 54% if the gap between the 2 doses which was 4-6 weeks as per initial recommendation being followed earlier. After analyzing this data, Indian government has increased the gap between both doses from 4-6 weeks to 12-16 weeks.
Q. Does vaccination with Covishield Vaccine protect me against newer strains/mutated versions of COVID-19 virus?
Yes. All vaccines are expected to provide a reasonable amount of protection against the newer strains/mutated versions of the COVID-19 virus also. The body responds to vaccination by making more than one type of antibodies, that effectively destroy the virus. Based on the currently available data, the mutations as reported, are unlikely to make the vaccine ineffective and protect an individual against COVID-19 effectively.
Q. Which vaccine is better, Covishield Vaccine or Covaxin?
There is no comparison done between the two, Covishield Vaccine or Covaxin being used in India, so one cannot say which is better. Both the vaccines are effective in preventing the COVID-19 infection in all who take it, particularly, elderly people or those who have comorbidities such as diabetes or hypertension (high blood pressure).
Q. In how many days will Covishield Vaccine create an adequate amount of antibodies to protect me against COVID-19?
It usually takes 2-3 weeks after completion of the entire vaccination schedule, i.e., after the second dose of Covishield Vaccine or Covaxin, whichever has been administered to you.
Q. What are the expected side effects of Covishield Vaccine?
Covishield Vaccine may show mild side effects like injection site tenderness or pain, headache, fatigue, myalgia (muscle pain), malaise, fever, chills, joint pain, and nausea. Very rarely, a few events of demyelinating disorders have been reported following vaccination with this vaccine but without the causal relationship establishment.
Q. Who should not take Covishield Vaccine?
Individuals with a history of anaphylactic or allergic reaction to a previous dose of COVID-19 vaccine or any injectable therapies, pharmaceutical products, food items, etc, should not take Covishield Vaccine. Additionally, pregnant and lactating women have not been part of any COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial so far. Therefore, women who are pregnant or not sure of their pregnancy and lactating (breastfeeding) women should not receive the COVID-19 vaccine at this time. However, consult your doctor if you are not sure.
Q. Is it safe for a person suffering from hypertension/diabetes/chronic kidney disease/heart disease/lipid disorders etc., to take Covishield Vaccine?
Absolutely. Covishield Vaccine is safe and effective in adults with comorbidities such as hypertension/diabetes/chronic kidney disease/heart disease/lipid disorders, etc. The maximum benefit of getting Covishield Vaccine is for those who have such comorbidities. However, if you are concerned for any specific reason, please consult your doctor.
Q. What are the storage or transportation conditions needed for Covishield Vaccine?
Covishield Vaccine needs to be stored and transported at 2⁰ to 8⁰ Celsius. The cold chain for Covishield Vaccine is maintained through active and passive cold chain equipment available at approximately 29,000 cold chain points across India.
Q. How do I register myself online for an appointment for vaccination?
Online registration and appointment can be done through the Co-WIN portal. You will have to give some basic information about yourself and details of your photo identification card to get yourself registered online. From one mobile phone number, one can register 4 people, however, each person will need their photo identification document.
Q. What if I haven't pre-registered online? Can I still get vaccinated?
Yes. You can still get vaccinated even if you haven’t pre-registered online. Please ask your nearest Government healthcare worker to guide you about the nearest COVID-19 Vaccination Centre (CVC) where COVID vaccination will be available and the days of the week when this will be available. You need to carry your mobile phone and a photo identification document to get yourself vaccinated. The workers in the CVC will help you to register on the spot, get an appointment, and get vaccinated on the same day.
Q. Has Covishield Vaccine undergone the necessary clinical trials before granting EUA?
Yes. Covishield Vaccine has undergone the necessary clinical trials before granting EUA.
Q. What is Emergency Use Authorization?
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) or permission for restricted use is a declaration issued by Indian regulators in alignment with global guidelines, to use certain vaccines, medicines, or devices to diagnose, treat or prevent a serious medical condition (such as COVID-19 in the current scenario) in case there is an outbreak of such an illness that poses threat to public health. Regulatory authorities may not approve the use of any such medical measures but may still allow it to be used against the illness weighing the benefits against the risks involved. However, there are continuous lab assessments and clinical trials to check on the safety, effectiveness, and quality of the vaccines.
Q. Which COVID-19 vaccines are granted emergency use authorization in India?
Five vaccines that have been granted emergency use authorization by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) in India are Covishield (AstraZeneca's vaccine, manufactured by Serum Institute of India), Covaxin (manufactured by Bharat Biotech Limited), Sputnik V (Russia's vaccine, being manufactured by Dr. Reddy's laboratories in India), Moderna (US vaccine being imported by Cipla, India) and the most recent being Johnson and Johnson’s single dose Covid-19 Vaccine.<br>
Q. What is COVID-19?
Coronavirus disease 2019, better known as COVID-19, is an illness of the lungs caused by a virus called SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2), which is seen to infect humans for the very first time. COVID-19 is a highly infectious viral disease that spreads from one person to another at a very fast pace. Persons suffering from COVID-19 are likely to have breathing difficulties, fever, and cough as the major symptoms.
