Chinese Covid-19 Vaccine Trials Halted In Brazil After Serious Adverse Event

The final-stage trial of a Chinese frontrunner Covid-19 vaccine named Coronavac has been stopped in Brazil due to an adverse event, Bloomberg reports. The vaccine has been developed by Beijing-based Sinovac Biotech Ltd and Sao Paulo’s Instituto Butantan.

The Brazil Health Agency did not reveal further details of the situation, however, it will further analyze whether the concerned tests and studies should continue furthermore. On the other hand, Instituto Butantan’s Director Dimas Covas had declared that a volunteer for the vaccine had died, but his demise was unrelated to the tests.

Reportedly, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro had criticized the Coronavac vaccine in the previous months. Bolsonaro had accused China of lacking credibility to come up with solutions for the ongoing pandemic. He even asserted that the people will be wary of the effects of the “shots” due to its place of origin.

AstraZeneca Plc and Johnson & Johnson had too halted their respective vaccine trials due to similar incidents but they had resumed operations after an investigation. However, China has already begun administering its vaccine including the Coronavac to numerous people based on an expansive emergency use approval.

The Chinese science ministry had announced that its companies had vaccinated over 60,000 volunteers for final-stage trials last month. Hospitalization, risk of death, serious incapacitation and death are some adverse incidents that happen during drug trials.