Covaxin vs. Covishield: Everything You Need to Know About India's COVID-19 Vaccines

India—the second worse-hit country by the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus—is all set to commence its third phase of the COVID-19 vaccination drive. 

From 1st May onward, citizens between the age of 18 to 45 years will be allowed to take their first vaccination jab—across private as well as government vaccination centers—after having registered on the CoWIN platform. However, many people are still struggling to delineate between the two Indian vaccines, namely Covaxin and Covishield, and their primary features including efficacy rate, developer, administration etc. 

If you happen to be one of those who is eligible to get vaccinated in the third roll-out, and are unable to make up your mind about which vaccine to take, here's all Dr Arvind Malik, M.S, Deputy CMO, CHC Chaprauli, wants you to know.

 

Vaccine Developers 

 

Covaxin has been developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech International Ltd, in association with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV). Covishield, on the other hand, has been developed by the Oxford-AstraZeneca, and is being manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII).

 

Type of Vaccine

 

Covaxin is an inactivated vaccine which has been prepared on a tried and tested platform of dead viruses. It has been developed with Whole-Virion Inactivated Vero Cell-derived technology, which contain inactivated viruses that cannot infect a person, but can teach the immune system to respond against the active virus. Whereas, Covishield has been prepared using the viral vector platform which is an entirely different technology. Similar to Covaxin, the cold virus in Covishield is incapable of infecting the receiver, however, can teach the immune system to prepare a mechanism against the active virus.

 

Dosage

 

There isn't any difference between the two vaccines in terms of dosage. Both Covaxin and Covishield follow a two-dose regimen, administered at least 28 days apart.

 

Storage Guidelines

 

Both Covishield and Covaxin must be stored at 2-8 degrees centigrade, which is a household refrigerator temperature. This makes both vaccines best-suited for Indian conditions, since most of the vaccines in India are stored at the same temperature range. The storage conditions of these vaccines also makes transportation easier.

 

Efficacy Rate

 

The effectiveness of the Covishield vaccine is nearly 90 percent, as per global reports. Whereas, the efficacy of Covaxin is approximately 81 percent according to interim third phase trial results. Covishield has shown a very satisfactory efficacy of 62 percent.

 

Mode of Administration

 

Both Covaxin and Covishield are intramuscular vaccines.

 

Age of Beneficiaries

 

While Covishield has been approved for those aged 18 years and above, Covaxin can be administered to people aged 12 years and above. However, there isn't any conclusive evidence about whether the vaccine can be given to children or pregnant women. 

 

"I personally recommend that adults opt to take Covaxin, given its higher efficacy as compared to Covishield and its effectiveness against the mutant strains of the virus in India," explains Dr Arvind Malik, M.S, Deputy CMO, CHC Chaprauli.