COVID-19 vaccine: Am I the next guinea pig?
As the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic rages around the world, an effective vaccine seems to be the only path to salvation. The distribution of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines triggers some anxiety in any inquisitive mind. Some are asking: Do I want to take the vaccine? Is it safe? Shall I be the next guinea pig, or shall I wait a few more months?
I am a vascular surgeon, required to take the vaccine early on with little choice. As the physician in the family, I did the research to give the bestinformed advice to my 85-year-old mother and our three young children. As you struggle with similar dilemmas, the following may help you make decisions.
The Impact of vaccination
Vaccination trains the human body to fight illness. The concept has been proven to be very effective. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention demonstrate that the average annual number of reportable infections of smallpox, diphtheria, and polio decreased from tens of thousands per year during the 20th century to zero in
2004. In other words, the widespread use of childhood vaccination, exceeding 90 percent in most areas of the U.S., has eradicated some diseases that constituted a major source of morbidity and mortality in the past. So much so that smallpox has become history and you are fortunate to not experience it. The characteristic disfiguring facial rash can only be found in textbooks.
Moreover, various studies have demonstrated that children who do not receive appropriate vaccinations are 20 to 30 times more likely to suffer from infections. Vaccination is one of the most effective public health measures and is likely to have the greatest impact in our fight against COVID-19. It also constitutes a tremendous investment for our society as the return in health cost savings is estimated at $17 for every single dollar spent on vaccination. To put things in perspective, no medication or surgical intervention has ever been found to have such a dramatic effect on health.
The safety of vaccines
As a vascular surgeon, I work every day to save a life and sometimes get good press for it. Before the current pandemic, vaccines saved thousands of lives every day but only got bad press for the occasional adverse reaction. The most notable example that still trolls social media is autism. The root of this theory relates to a scientific paper published in 1998 based on fabricated data. The paper was subsequently removed, and the author banned from practicing medicine. Several subsequent studies demonstrated no association between autism and vaccination.
However, the concern of a vaccine causing harm remains the most common cause of nonvaccination. In fact, vaccination can sometimes lead to transient fever, fatigue and joint pain. But more serious reactions such as encephalitis or paralysis (Guillain-Barré Syndrome) are very rare and estimated at less than 0.01 percent. The safety of vaccines is ensured by extensive monitoring systems involving close collaboration between the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration. The Rotashield vaccine approved in 1998 is a proof of the efficacy of those mechanisms. A serious and very rare gastrointestinal complication affecting 1 in 10,000 recipients was detected within a year of licensing and lead to retraction of the vaccine.
Trust around vaccination
Vaccination can only quell the pandemic after most of the population receives it. As such, “we’re all in it together” becomes as relevant to the therapy as it is to the misery affecting millions. Over the past decade, outbreaks of measles infection have affected clusters with low immunization rates in California (2014), Italy (2017) and France (2017). These events lead to changes in various policies to limit exemptions from vaccination. As such, Senate Bill 277 (2015) eliminated access to nonmedical exemptions completely in California. Despite opposition from certain groups and claims that vaccination mandates constitute an infringement on individual rights, the evidence that such measures benefit society is overwhelming.
As for COVID-19 vaccines, the evidence will be limited. The speed of development was necessary to meet the urgency of the crisis. Governmental and independent experts have approved the vaccines based on the time-tested processes established by the FDA and CDC away from political, pharmaceutical or media influences. Transparency and engagement are essential to build trust with the public especially in a politically
Despite opposition from certain groups and claims that vaccination mandates constitute an infringement on individual rights, the evidence that such measures benefit society is overwhelming.
divided environment.
Vaccination is safe and most effective when widely administered. My family and I are following the lead of public health experts and are confident that their recommendations are in our best interest as individuals and as a society.