India’s vaccination campaign is the largest vaccination (free) campaign in the world. The first phase of immunization in India was started in January 2021 under which all health professionals and frontline people were vaccinated. The vaccines that are being administered under this vaccination campaign are Covishield and Covaccine. Since these are home vaccines, people are always found debating Covaxin vs Covishield. However, India is now in its third phase of vaccination, and citizens still have questions about the efficacy, side effects, rates of the two vaccines. According to the Government of India database, around 65.6 crore Covid19 vaccinations have already been administered by the last week of August. Did you know that over 88% of these vaccines are Covishield? Does this mean that Covishield is more preferred? Or that the production of Covaxin is low? What is the difference between the two?
Covaxin vs Covishield
Covaxin and Covishield are two very similar vaccines from India which have been manufactured by Indian institutes i.e. Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute respectively. India is in the third phase of the vaccination campaign under which all citizens above the age of 18 years have been targeted to be vaccinated. Both these are indigenous vaccines for COVID-19 in India which are protecting not only Indian citizens but also other countries. We will tell you in our article which vaccine is right for you and which is not. We will also give you information about the side effects of this vaccine. Hopefully, you will read this article of ours carefully, because it is very important for you to get this information.
This confusion created huge tension across the country as a large number of people were dying. Now, the mortality rate has come down and the situation is returning to normal as vaccination is available. When we talk about India, it has recently experienced the second wave of COVID-19 but the process of vaccination is still going on and around 94 crore people have been fully vaccinated. However, the number of fully vaccinated individuals is small when we compare it with the population of other countries and countries. We should be happy that people are being vaccinated free of cost and the government is working tirelessly to vaccinate all citizens.
COVID 19 Vaccine– Overview
| Vaccine Name | Covaxin and Covishield |
| Developed By | Covaxin- Bharat Biotech International Covidshield – Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd. |
| No. of Doses | 2 |
| Country of Origin | India |
| Protection Against | Covid-19 disease |
| Virus Name | Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) |
| Year of introduction | 2020 |
| Gape Between Dose 1 and Dose 2 | Nearly 12 weeks |
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Covaxin vs Covishield Vaccine Efficacy Rate
| Covaxin | Covishield |
| If you apply it in a phase 3 trial with Covaxin, it will have an effect of 78% – 100%. | If you use this Kovid injection, the effect is 70% -90%. |
| These injections are applied only to people above 18 years of age. | Covishield can only be applied to people over 12 years of age. |
| The injection should only be done under the supervision of the doctors, and do not use anything without the advice of the doctors. | We request you to use this vaccine only under the supervision of doctors and take the advice of doctors. |
| This injection is administered to you in 4-6 weeks. | You have to take two to two full weeks after 4–8 weeks of this second vaccination. |
Dosage and Storage of Covaxin and Covishield
Both the vaccines can be stored at 2 to 8 degrees centigrade temperature. This makes it easy for storage in the refrigerator and is ideal for the Indian climate. Transportation of vaccines also becomes easier. Doctors and nurses administer 0.5 ml of Covashield vaccine or Covaxin vaccine to a person’s upper arm area. The Covishield vaccine is given in two doses, 84 days or 12-14 weeks apart. Doctors give Covaxin in two doses, but they are 30 days apart.
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Covaxin and Covishield Made By
- Covishield is a COVID 19 vaccine developed by Oxford – Astra Zeneca, manufactured at Serum Institute of India. The CoviShield vaccine is made using the viral vector platform. It involves modifying a chimpanzee adenovirus to carry the Covid-19 spike protein. The cold virus cannot infect a person who gets it, but can help the body’s immune system make antibodies.
- Covaxin, on the other hand, is developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech in association with the National Institute of Virology and the Indian Medical Research Council. It is an inactivated viral vaccine, which cannot attack the body but helps in making antibodies.
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Side Effects
- There may be Covaxin pain at the injection site, swelling, redness at the injection site, dizziness and weakness, a rash all over the body. There may also be an increased heartbeat. Swelling of the throat and difficulty in breathing, allergic reaction, vomiting, nausea, malaise, fever, headache, body aches, pain in the arm that has been injected may also occur. There may be stiffness in the upper arm. But till now no clear information has been received about it.
- After injecting Covishield, you may experience pain at the injection site, headache, joint pain, feverish feeling, generally unwellness, itching at the injection site The swelling may also feel like warmth and tenderness. There is no clear information about this, based on an assumption that it can happen after injection, but so far no clear effects of its ill effects have been revealed.
Go to official website icmr.gov.in
Also Check Covishield Vaccine Registration
Conclusion on Which is the Best Vaccine Between Covaxin & Covishield
As the choices increase, people will have the opportunity to make an informed decision and choose one. But, for the time being, delaying the vaccine can kill someone. With the third wave approaches, people should get any available vaccines and take all the Covid19 proper precautions. If anyone still has concerns about the vaccine or is in a situation where the vaccine is prohibited, they should contact a doctor immediately.
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