According to her case report published by the hospital in the medical journal, Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome, she had received her first dose of Covishield on March 4. “Before vaccination, her blood glucose levels were fairly under control with regular medications and diet. However, after it, the levels remained high for almost a month, and she needed an increased dose of metformin, an anti-diabetic drug,” said Dr Anoop Misra, chairman, Fortis C-Doc.
Another patient, a 64-year-old man, received the first dose of Covishield without any problems on January 18. Subsequently, the case report published in the journal said his blood pressure increased from 130/80 mm of Hg to 160/90 mm Hg by the end of the day. “Additionally, he had tachycardia, sweating, and palpitations for a few hours. Post vaccination, blood glucose values showed an increase for three days and then reverted to normal without additional intervention,” it added. There was another similar case report involving a 65-year-old man, who reported increased levels of blood glucose post vaccination, which reverted to normal without any intervention in 15 days.
The common side effects that had been reported with Covishield, include fatigue, chills, headache, fever, flu-like symptoms. Less common ones were abdominal pain, enlarged lymph nodes, itchy skin, or rash.
However, the doctors at the hospital said, increase in blood pressure, or changes in blood glucose levels in diabetic or non-diabetic individuals had not been mentioned in the vaccine trial data. “All three cases showed exceptionally good compliance with diet and exercise before administration of vaccine and maintained good glycemic control for a long time. In these cases, all the other causes of elevation of blood glucose were excluded. Overall, it appears that vaccines are a probable cause of sudden increase in blood glucose levels,” they added in the journal report.
Dr Misra said, fortunately, in all these cases, the rise in blood sugar levels was self-limiting and did not require major changes in treatment. “But it is important for patients with a history of diabetes to be watchful of sudden increases in blood sugar or blood pressure. Good monitoring can prevent any potential complication,” he added.