Covaxin vs Covishield: A Comparison between the Covid-19 Vaccines of India

The second wave of Covid-19 pandemic has reminded people the hard times faced during the coronavirus outbreak in 2020 in India. However, there is still an upper hand in 2021 in the fight against Covid-19, and this can be attributed to the nationwide vaccination drive.

It has been clear that getting vaccinated is one of the simple yet effective ways to combat the pandemic. Vaccination helps in producing antibodies and boosts the immune system to fight against any infection. Besides, getting Covid-19 vaccination is known to reduce the severity of the infection and helps in lowering the chances of getting hospitalized due to the severe infection caused due to Covid-19.

Covaxin Vs Covishield

Currently, the Indian Government has approved two vaccines namely Covaxin and Covishield to fight Covid-19. Many people are wondering which vaccine is better among the two, and here is a quick read to help them answer all their queries.

Covaxin

Covaxin was given approval for by the Indian government for emergency use in January 2020. This Covid-19 vaccine is manufactured in India by Bharat Biotech in partnership with the Indian Council of Medical research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology.

• Working of Covaxin: The pharma company created Covaxin using a sample of the Covid-19 virus isolated by the National Institute of Virology. After the vaccination, the immune system starts producing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. According to the company, the immunogenicity of the vaccine is further enhanced by adding immune-potentiators, known as vaccine adjuvants.
   
• Efficacy: Bharat Biotech conducted an interim analysis on the basis of Phase III trial results and showed its efficacy rate as 81%. The vaccine is also effective against the UK variant too.

Covishield

Covishield is one of the first two vaccines approved by the Indian Government for emergency use. The vaccine is developed by the University of Oxford in partnership with AstraZeneca. Covishield is produced at the Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune.

• Working of Covishield: The formula to develop Covishield is similar to Russia’s Sputnik V, which is a weakened of adenovirus, a common cold virus from chimpanzees. The vaccine has been modified to look similar to SARS CoV-2 but it cannot cause illness. After vaccination, Covishield prompts the human immune system to produce antibodies against the live virus.
   
• Efficacy: As per the phase III trials in December 2020, the Covishield showed an efficacy of 70.4%, which is based on the international clinical trial results conducted across Brazil and the United Kingdom. It was seen that when people were given the second dose, the efficacy of the vaccine reached up to 90%.

Comparison between Covaxin and Covishield

Which Countries are Adopting India's Vaccines?

According to outlookindia.com, India has shipped over 64 million doses of vaccines to 84 countries in Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the Caribbean. The recipient countries include Canada, UK, Mexico, and Brazil.

Both Covaxin and Covishield have been exported in various countries. India has given these vaccines in some form of gifts, while others in line with commercial agreements signed between the recipient nations and vaccine makers. Whereas some vaccines are given under the Covax scheme led by the World Health Organization (WHO). India is hoping to deliver more than 2 billion doses to people to almost 190 countries in less than a year.

However, in March 2021, India placed a temporary hold on all exports of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to rising cases of Covid-19 in the country, which increased the demand for vaccines for own rollout.

Covaxin or Covishield: Which Is Better?

Currently, there is no head-to-head comparison data available for both the vaccines in India. Both Covaxin and Covishield work fine in preventing and lowering the risk of getting a serious infection. For now, the key aim of India is to prevent death in elderly people and those with comorbid conditions such as respiratory disease, diabetes, heart disease, and other diseases.

About the Author(s)

   

Upama Goswami

Upama Goswami is a creative writer, editor, aspiring poet, and life-long learner of philosophy, literature, technology, and all things interesting. Her works have been published in various online publications. Upama is quite creative in her craft and can engage her audience with a compelling style of storytelling. She loves to paint, travel, exploring different niches of performing arts, watching movies, and learn new languages in her free time.