Covid India Updates: How to monitor and report coronavirus vaccine side effects?

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Tuesday issued directions on how to use the new drug called 2-DG for Covid patients. The drug can be given to patients under the care and prescription of doctors.

I don't think the third wave will be as deadly as the second wave. The need is to follow Covid protocol and vaccinate as many people as we can, said AIIMS chief Dr. Randeep Guleria. He also rubbished all rumours surrounding Covid vaccine amid reports of people expressing apprehension over vaccine shots.

Mixing of vaccine is not the protocol yet, same vaccines  (Covishield and Covaxin) to be administered for both doses. Stick to the SOP: Union Health Ministry

There is no shortage of vaccine. By mid-July or August, we will have enough doses to vaccinate 1 crore people per day. We are confident of vaccinating the whole population by December: Balram Bhargava, ICMR 

Of late, several WhatsApp forwards and social media posts claimed that Black Fungus can spread through farm chickens. Here's the truth!

Wear a mask so the nasal clip is over the nose. External pleats should face downwards. Open mask pleats so it covers mouth and nose. Tie upper strings first. Then lower strings. There should be no gap between the face and mask.

India on Tuesday recorded 1,27,510 new cases of the novel coronavirus, along with 2,795 deaths due to the infection. According to the data shared by the Union Health Ministry, the country saw a total of 2,55,287 discharges in the last 24 hours, taking the total recovery to 2,59,47,629. The total cases of COVID-19 in India have now mounted to 2,81,75,044, with 18,95,520 active cases, the data showed. The total death toll in the country is now at 3,31,895. A total of 21,60,46,638 people have so far been vaccinated against COVID-19 in India.

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced that Covid-19 variants of concern will be known by letters of the Greek alphabet, saying it will help avoid stigmatising countries where they first appear. A group of experts convened by the health organization recommended the new labelling, which "will be easier and more practical to (be) discussed by non-scientific audiences," the WHO said on Monday, DPA news agency reported.

The organization said that the existing systems for naming and tracking genetic lineages of SARS-CoV-2 - the virus that causes Covid-19 - will remain in use by scientists and in scientific research. So far, the WHO has identified four variants of concern.

The one first detected in Britain will be known as Alpha, the one first found in South Africa will be Beta and the one first identified in Brazil will be Gamma. The newest of the four, which was first detected in India and designated as a variant of concern on May 11, will be known as Delta.

The labelling announcement came as WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned the coronavirus pandemic is far from over as he closed the group's annual meeting, moved online this year due to the disease. "The reality is, we still have a lot of work to do to end this pandemic," he said. "We're very encouraged that cases and deaths are continuing to decline globally, but it would be a monumental error for any country to think the danger has passed."

He stressed the importance of precautions that have gone into common usage since the pandemic started: social-distancing, hand-washing, wearing facial masks and ensuring a fair distribution of vaccines.

(IANS)

Getting vaccinated is the most important step to protect yourself from Covid infection. The vaccination process is open for people aged 18 and above. While there are no adverse health reactions to vaccines, one can witness mild side effects. However, one should also know how to monitor and report severe side effects like in people having severe allergic reactions. Common side effects include-

• Arm soreness
• Mild fever
• Tiredness
• Headaches
• Muscle or joint pain