Govt May Reduce Gap Between Covishield Doses, But Only for Those Aged 45 & Above: Report

The government may minimise the gap between the two doses of the Covishield vaccination once more, but only for people 45 years and older. Dr. NK Arora, chairman of the Covid-19 working group, said in an interview that a decision might be made in two to four weeks.

The decision will be based on final scientific evidence, he said, the Mint said in a report.

For all adults, the time between Covishield dosages is currently 12 to 16 weeks. The recommended gap between the two doses of Covishield was 4-6 weeks at the start of the immunisation campaign in India, then was increased to 4 to 8 weeks, and finally to 12 to 16 weeks.

The decision to extend the gap to 12 to 16 weeks was met with controversy, as it was regarded as an attempt to address the country’s vaccination shortage at the time. Experts, on the other hand, claimed that the decision was based on new international scientific studies that showed that a longer gap between dosages produced more antibodies.

The percentage of antibodies generated by the initial shot of the vaccine was shown to be relatively high in these tests. As a result, the following shot should be postponed to give the first injection more time to work.

However, in June, after India lengthened the interval between the two doses, studies claimed that the effectiveness of the first Covishield shot had been overestimated previously. This was followed by a reduction in the time between the two Covishield dosages in various countries. Indian experts have stated that the vaccination situation is fluid and would change as new research emerges, but that public health will always take precedence in any choice made.

Because Covishield is the same as the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, worldwide data on the efficacy of each dose is available. Many research on the effectiveness of the doses on the local populace are now being conducted in India as well. Dr. NK Arora stated, “We have gathered data on the impact of vaccines and their dosage interval on different age groups and from different regions.”

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