MADURAI: In a suspected serious Adverse Event Following Immunisation (AEFI), a 29-year-old techie died on the way to Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) on Saturday, within 21 hours of taking the first dose of Covishield vaccine.
The deceased has been identified as D Andrew Simon, a resident of New Vilangudi. He was working as a software engineer in the United Kingdom and had returned to Madurai in August last. He had been working from home since then.
Sources close to his family said that Simon later switched his job and was working from home for a Bengaluru-based company for the past four months. He also got married nearly three months ago.
“On Friday around 2 pm, he and his wife visited Samayanallur block Primary Health Centre at Sathyamoorthy Nagar and took the first dose of Covishield vaccine.
The couple experienced body ache in the night. Simon woke up in the middle of the night due to body ache and seemed normal in the morning. While in the bathroom, he developed sudden breathlessness and collapsed around 8.30 am,” said one of his relatives.
As he was denied admission at a private hospital nearby, he was rushed to GRH, the relative added.
District Immunisation Officer (DIO) Dr KV Arjun Kumar said that there is no evidence of immediate allergic reactions to the vaccine while he was in observation at the post-vaccination waiting centre.
“He had complained of sudden onset of breathing difficulty and was taken to the Superspeciality Block of GRH where he was declared ‘brought dead’ around 10.45 am.”
Dr Kumar added that the techie was diabetic for the past six months but was not on treatment. “He did not have any history of hypertension / Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease / tuberculosis / allergy to drugs and food. He was neither a smoker nor an alcoholic,” said the DIO.
Following the death of Simon, a case of suspicious death was registered by Koodalputhur police and an autopsy was conducted at the GRH. His mortal remains were later laid to rest at a cemetery near Nagamalai Pudukottai, sources said.
“There was no macroscopic finding during the autopsy and the viscera has been sent to the forensic laboratory,” said an official at the hospital. Officials at the health department said that AEFI is categorised into three - mild, moderate and serious.
“In Madurai district, no AEFI was reported due to Covaxin. In case of AEFI due to Covishield, only one mild case was reported in the district so far. Based on the autopsy report, a serious AEFI may be reported, which would be the first in the district,” an official told TNIE.
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