Death Occurs After Vaccination... Jeong Eun-kyung: "No Confirmed Causal Cases... Please Do Not Avoid Vaccination" (Comprehensive Report 2)

Two Deaths After Vaccination in Goyang and Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi
Authorities "Under Investigation... No Globally Confirmed Causality Cases"

COVAX AZ Vaccine 2,102,400 Doses Supplied Domestically by May

Jung Eun-kyung, Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (Head of the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team) [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Seo So-jeong and Lee Chun-hee] The first death case has occurred since the start of COVID-19 vaccinations in South Korea. In response, authorities emphasized that investigations are ongoing and that no causal relationship between vaccination and death has been confirmed in overseas post-vaccination death cases, urging people not to avoid vaccination due to excessive anxiety.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) Central Disease Control Headquarters announced on the 3rd that as of midnight, among 209 reported suspected adverse reactions after vaccination, two death cases have been reported and are under investigation.

On the same day, Jeong Eun-kyung, head of KDCA and the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team, stated, "There are two reported cases of death after COVID-19 vaccination today, and we plan to hold an epidemiological investigation and a damage investigation team meeting to determine causality."

According to KDCA, the deceased A (male, in his 50s) was a patient admitted to a nursing hospital. After receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine around 9:30 a.m. on the 2nd, he complained of chest pain, nausea, and difficulty breathing about 11 hours later and was treated, but death was confirmed at 7 a.m. on the 3rd.

The deceased B (male, in his 60s) was also a patient admitted to a nursing hospital. After receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine around 2:30 p.m. on the 27th of last month, he showed symptoms such as fever and generalized muscle pain about 33 hours later. His condition improved but then worsened, and he died at 10 a.m. today.

KDCA is conducting an epidemiological investigation with the relevant local governments and plans to confirm the association with vaccination through additional medical record reviews, rapid response team assessments at provincial levels, and KDCA damage investigation team reviews.

Jeong Eun-kyung emphasized repeatedly, "Many death cases after COVID-19 vaccination have been reported in other countries as well, but so far, no cases have been confirmed to have a causal relationship with vaccination." According to KDCA, deaths have occurred in the UK (402), France (171), Germany (113), Norway (93), and Canada (6).

Jeong added, "We hope the public does not avoid vaccination due to excessive anxiety. To build trust, we will promptly conduct detailed investigations and expert reviews of reported cases and transparently provide information so that misconceptions or concerns about risks can be corrected."

Among the adverse reactions confirmed so far, the remaining 207 cases were mild symptoms commonly occurring after vaccination, such as headache, fever, nausea, and vomiting.

The 53 newly reported adverse reaction cases were all reported after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine. These include 2 deaths, 48 mild cases such as headache, fever, nausea, and vomiting, and 3 suspected anaphylaxis-like reactions.

KDCA explained that anaphylaxis-like reactions show symptoms similar to anaphylaxis, such as difficulty breathing and hives, but differ from true anaphylaxis. Jo Eun-hee, head of the Post-Vaccination Management Team at the COVID-19 Vaccination Promotion Team, said, "Anaphylaxis-like reactions cause bodily symptoms through mechanisms different from anaphylaxis," and since shock does not occur, only 'anaphylactic shock' is classified as a severe adverse reaction.

Jeong said, "We are quickly investigating the causal relationship and causes of vaccination through prompt investigations," and urged, "To prevent severe adverse reactions such as anaphylaxis, please get vaccinated when you are in good health."

He added, "During the waiting period, drink plenty of fluids, and if you have any symptoms or chronic diseases during the pre-screening, be sure to inform medical personnel. Especially, patients with chronic or underlying diseases should closely monitor for adverse reactions after vaccination."

On the morning of the 26th, medical staff at Geumcheon-gu Public Health Center in Seoul are administering the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine for COVID-19 to a care worker.
Photo by Joint Press Corps

The COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team announced that as of midnight on the same day, an additional 63,644 people were vaccinated, completing the first dose for a total of 87,428 people. Among them, 85,904 received the AstraZeneca vaccine, and 1,524 received the Pfizer vaccine.

By vaccination institution and target group, 71,456 nursing hospital residents were vaccinated, accounting for 35.2% of the target group. Nursing facility residents numbered 14,307 (13.2%), COVID-19 patient treatment hospital staff 1,524 (2.7%), and first responders 141 received vaccinations.

Meanwhile, the promotion team announced that the first distribution results of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the COVAX Facility were notified on the same day.

KDCA stated, "A total of 2,102,400 doses are scheduled to be supplied to South Korea by May," and "Additional notifications regarding the distribution volumes for February-March and April-May are expected around this weekend."