A 26-year-old man is the second victim in Vietnam since its immunization program launched in March 2021.

Testing in the community in Danang. Photo: The Hanoi Times

The man, who is a teacher in a Hanoi suburb, showed convulsions and died 39 hours after taking jab of AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine. He had no underlying diseases and was in normal condition before the injection.

Leading health professionals of Bach Mai Hospital and the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) concluded that the death’s reasons were unknown. Clinical manifestations and forensic findings did not indicate death due to anaphylaxis or embolism. It needs microscopic test and genome sequencing to draw conclusions.

According to the Ministry of Health, the man was given a jab together with 100 people in Nam Hong Clinics in Dong Anh District on June 20. The others have been in good health.

The vaccine is issued by the Ministry of Health, having clear origin, full books, invoices, and delivery notes. Meanwhile, procedures for receiving, transporting and storing vaccines and immunization practices are in accordance with regulations.

This is the second death reported in Vietnam after more than 2.83 million doses were administered. The first victim is a 35-year-old nurse in the southern province of An Giang. She suffered severe allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis one day after the injection.

Vietnam's coronavirus cases. Source: MoH. Chart: Minh Vu

On June 22, Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Danang, Binh Duong spotlighted Vietnam’s Covid-19 news as they became three hotspots with widespread community transmission. The situation has forced the local governments to take tougher countermeasures.

On the day, more people tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in the community and several hospitals in the southern economic hub of HCMC, requiring local authorities to take massive testing. The city of 10 million inhabitants is under the stay-at-home order since June 20 after two weeks of social distancing.

The southeastern province of Binh Duong has raised the pandemic alert to the highest level and prepared resources for the fight against Covid-19. Currently, the local government is making efforts to stop the infection clusters inside companies in industrial parks.

In addition, the provincial army has raised the quarantine capacity to 10,000 beds and kept the reserve forces ready when needed. Meanwhile, local authorities have asked for more vaccines from the Ministry of Health.

Binh Duong has put on lockdown Tan Uyen Town, Thuan An City, and some districts in Di An and Thu Dau Mot Cities after the province reported more than 140 infections.

Nearly 23,000 workers in HCMC and Binh Duong have been put on temporary leave due to Covdi-19.

Meanwhile, the central city of Danang is racing against time to conduct massive testing, contact tracing, and quarantining first-generation contacts of confirmed cases (F1) after it underwent days without locally-transmitted infections.

Authorized agencies are disseminating the 5K-measure practice (masking – disinfection – distance – no gathering – medical declaration), and operating communal groups against Covid-19 to timely detect suspected cases.

Regarding vaccines, Vietnam is among recipients of 55 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine donated by the US through the WHO-led vaccine sharing COVAX Facility and direct supply.

In addition, Japan pledged more support to Vietnam in vaccine supply and immunization work at the telephone conversation held on June 21 between Chairman of Vietnam’s National Assembly Vuong Dinh Hue and Tadamori Ōshima, Japanese Speaker of the House of Representatives.