Deaths after Pfizer vaccination at Spanish nursing home aggravate concerns
Concerns over the mRNA vaccine intensified following a Russia Today report on Monday that all 78 residents at a nursing home in Madrid, Spain had tested positive for COVID- 19 after being given their first dose of the Pfizer- BioNTech vaccine on January 13, and at least seven people have died.
A Chinese virologist advised elderly people, especially those with underlying conditions, not to take mRNA vaccine such as Pfizer’s, as it could induce their condition and worsen their health, while a vaccine expert warned the public to take appropriate measures even after being vaccinated, as people are likely to be infected with the virus before the vaccine takes effect.
Yang Zhanqiu, deputy director of the pathogen biology department at Wuhan University, said that the positive test for COVID- 19 can be divided into two cases: one is antibody positive and another is positive nucleic acid testing.
He noted that the positive nucleic acid testing result is “highly unlikely.” Yang explained that the vaccine could not been approved until it passes safety tests, so it will not work like a “synthetic virus” infecting humans.
A normal person whose antibody is positive after taking the mRNA- based vaccine suggested that he/ she got protected from getting infected, Yang said.
He explained that the mRNA vaccines teach human cells to make a protein to trigger an immune response, which can then protect people from getting infected if the real virus enters the body.
Tao Lina, a Shanghai- based expert on vaccines, believed that it is possible that the vaccination causes positive IgM antibodies, which is a natural process.
In this case, the seven could have died of other illnesses. Tao urged an immediate investigation into their deaths.
Some components in mRNA vaccines, such as polyethylene glycol, have not been used in vaccine production before, and the mRNA- based vaccine was first approved to treat an infectious disease amid this COVID- 19 pandemic, so Yang suggested elderly citizens and people with underlying conditions not to take the vaccine.