ISLAMABAD: The United States (US) on Thursday provided about 3.7 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine to Pakistan through the COVAX facility to assist the country in vaccinating its population against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Pakistan reported 4,553 new cases of coronavirus during the past 24 hours, taking the tally for confirmed cases to 1,140,411.
At least 85 deaths were also reported during the said period. A total of 25,320 patients have succumbed to the virus in the country so far. Moreover, 3,413 recoveries were also reported during the past 24-hour period, taking total recoveries to 1,022,847.
According to a press release issued by the US State Department today, the donation is part of the 500 million Pfizer doses the United States purchased this summer to deliver to 92 countries worldwide, including Pakistan, to fulfil President Joe Biden’s commitment to provide safe and effective vaccines around the world and supercharge the global fight against the pandemic.
Today’s donation of 3.7 million vaccines is in addition to the 5.5 million Moderna vaccine doses that the US government donated to Pakistan in July, bringing the total number of doses sent from the United States to Pakistan to over 9.2 million, the communique added.
“There is an urgency, now more than ever, to put an end to this devastating pandemic, and Pakistan and the United States are continuing to work together to achieve that goal,” said US Embassy Chargé d’affaires Angela P. Aggeler. “The United States is proud to partner with the Pakistani people to defeat Covid-19. Together, we will continue to build a world that is safer and more secure against the threat of infectious disease.”
The state department further said that the US had also given more than $63 million in Covid-19 assistance to the government of Pakistan.
“Since the start of the pandemic, the United States has worked together with Pakistan to improve infection prevention and control, enhance patient care, expand laboratory testing, and support frontline healthcare workers,” it added
In addition to the 5.5 million doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine delivered to Pakistan, the United States is delivering a third tranche of 3.7 million Pfizer doses as part of our ongoing solidarity with the people of Pakistan as they recover from this devastating pandemic.
— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) August 26, 2021
However, it bears mentioning that a report by Reuters showed that there was a minutely increased risk of heart inflammation due to the Pfizer vaccine.
As per the report, the use of Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and German partner BioNTech SE’s (22UAy.DE) widely used Covid-19 vaccine marginally increases the risk of heart inflammation, but the risk is higher among those infected with the coronavirus, a study published on Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine showed.
Among every 100,000 patients who get the vaccine, 1 to 5 will likely develop myocarditis who would not otherwise have developed it, researchers reported based on data from Clalit Health Services, a large Israeli HMO.
That rate is much higher – 11 per 100,000 – among people infected with the coronavirus, they said.
The data comes days after Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine became the first fully approved vaccine in the United States for people aged 16 and older, a move that could potentially persuade vaccine skeptics to get the shot.
The researchers compared adverse event rates in 884,828 vaccinated individuals and an equal number of unvaccinated people. Overall, 21 persons reported myocarditis in the vaccinated group – mostly young men – compared with 6 people among the unvaccinated.
Most adverse events in vaccinated people were mild, but some, such as myocarditis, are potentially serious, researchers said.
The researchers also analyzed adverse event rates in more than 240,000 infected patients. The results indicate that Covid-19 infection is itself a very strong risk factor for myocarditis, and it also substantially increases the risk of other serious adverse events, they said.
“For me, this is a really terrific paper in part because it actually takes data from the same system, and tries to provide more information, not just about the potential risks of vaccination, but also the potential benefits of vaccination,” said Dr Grace Lee of Stanford University, whose editorial was published with the report.
Pfizer’s vaccine, along with a rival mRNA vaccine from Moderna Inc (MRNA.O), came under regulatory scrutiny in several countries after some reports of cases of heart inflammation.
Israel’s health ministry said in June it saw a possible link between such cases and Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Reuters contributed to this report
