70s Woman Dies After Flu Vaccination in Daejeon on 22nd... 11 Deaths Nationwide
KCDC: "Difficult to Find Direct Link to Vaccine, Continue Vaccination as Planned"
Some Citizens: "Vaccination Should Be Halted Immediately and Cause Investigated"
Experts: "Low Possibility of Death Due to Vaccine but Exceptions May Exist"
On the 20th, when the free influenza (flu) vaccination program was underway, citizens received flu vaccinations at the Korea Health Management Association Seoul Western Branch in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@
[Asia Economy reporters Seunggon Han and Yeonju Kim] "More than 10 people have died in just a few days, so why isn't the vaccination being stopped?", "How can we trust the government that still tells us to get the shot?"
As cases of death following flu vaccination continue to occur, anxiety about the vaccine is growing. However, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) has stated that there is no direct link between the cause of death and the vaccine, and plans to continue the vaccination program, which is increasing public concern.
Daejeon City announced on the 22nd that a woman in her 70s who fell unconscious after receiving the flu vaccine has died. According to the city, the woman, identified as A (79), who lived in Jijok-dong, Yuseong-gu, passed away at 1:10 a.m. that day.
A received the Korean vaccine Cobaxin quadrivalent influenza PF shot at an otolaryngology clinic in Banseok-dong, Yuseong-gu, around 10 a.m. on the 19th.
On the day she was vaccinated, starting from 8 p.m., A showed severe vomiting and high fever symptoms, and on the following day, the 20th, she lost consciousness due to respiratory distress and was transferred to a local general hospital where she was treated in the intensive care unit but ultimately died. It was confirmed that A had no underlying conditions such as hypertension or diabetes.
This is the second death case in Daejeon and the 11th nationwide. Since the first reported case of a 17-year-old high school student in Incheon who died after vaccination on the 16th, deaths have occurred in △Jeonbuk (77-year-old woman) △Daejeon (82-year-old man) △Daegu (78-year-old man) △Jeju (88-year-old man) △Seoul (53-year-old woman) △Gyeonggi (89-year-old man) △Andong (woman in her 70s) △Daejeon (79-year-old woman). Including two cases where the region and age were not disclosed at the request of the bereaved families, there are a total of 11 cases.
In this regard, the KDCA stated that while some cases may have a possibility, no direct link between flu vaccination and death has been confirmed.
On the afternoon of the 21st, KDCA Commissioner Jeong Eun-kyung held an emergency briefing regarding the flu vaccine, saying, "We discussed six death cases reported up to the morning of the 21st, but no severe adverse reaction cases were significantly higher in any specific vaccine," adding, "Among the death cases, two cannot rule out the possibility of anaphylaxis, and for the remaining reported cases, we will confirm causality through additional autopsy results and medical record investigations."
Anaphylactic shock is a type of protein hypersensitivity reaction that occurs within minutes to hours after exposure to causative substances such as certain foods or drugs, resulting in a severe allergic reaction.
The KDCA stated that although death cases have occurred, the situation is not severe enough to halt the entire flu vaccination program, and they plan to continue vaccinations.
However, the fact that the deceased received different types of vaccines, the deaths occurred across various age groups, the cases happened nationwide, and the adverse symptoms experienced after vaccination varied, are all increasing public anxiety.
Housewife Park (59) said, "The government still doesn't know whether the cause of death is the vaccine or not, so how can we trust and get vaccinated?" She emphasized, "I think vaccinations should be stopped until the cause is clarified."
She added, "People without underlying diseases also died after vaccination, and we can't even identify a problematic vaccine. Especially this year, I was determined to get the flu shot because of COVID-19, but now I hesitate," she lamented.
On the 12th, citizens are seen waiting to receive flu vaccinations at the Korea Health Management Association Seoul Eastern Branch in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Some citizens expressed distrust in the vaccine and said they would cancel or postpone their vaccinations, voicing dissatisfaction with the government's decision to proceed without suspending the program.
Office worker Kim (31, male) said, "We can't definitively say the vaccine caused the deaths, but it is true that people experienced adverse symptoms and then died after vaccination," adding, "Continuing vaccinations amid ongoing deaths could lead to greater risks."
Kim pointed out, "There are certainly citizens who think 'It should be okay to get vaccinated' just by listening to the government. Some schools even mandate flu vaccinations, so if the government doesn't stop the program, people will get vaccinated with anxiety regardless of their own will."
Experts judge the possibility of death due to vaccine side effects as low but acknowledge that exceptional cases may exist.
Professor Eom Jung-sik of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Gachon University Gil Medical Center said on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Perspective' on the 20th, "It's not yet at a stage where we can say death and the flu vaccine are 100% unrelated, so we need to see autopsy results," but explained, "The flu vaccine is an inactivated vaccine, meaning it is made from dead virus, not live virus, so inactivated vaccines rarely cause severe adverse reactions like death."
Professor Eom warned, "There may be exceptional cases, so it's not easy to talk about causality in advance. When influenza circulates in winter, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, there could be many more deaths."
Meanwhile, as of the 21st, a total of 431 adverse reaction reports following flu vaccination have been recorded. Among the types of adverse symptoms, allergies were the most common with 119 cases, followed by local reactions with 111 cases, and fever with 93 cases. Other adverse reactions accounted for 104 cases.
As of that day, about 12.97 million people have received the flu vaccine. Among them, 8.36 million received free vaccinations through the national immunization program, and 4.61 million were vaccinated through paid services.
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