J Clin Neurol.  2022 Nov;18(6):681-691. 10.3988/jcn.2022.18.6.681.

Spectrum of Neurological Complications Following COVID-19 Vaccination in India

• Devaraj R
• Shafi P
• Nagesh C
• Naidu A
• Satishchandra P

• KMID: 2534729
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3988/jcn.2022.18.6.681

Abstract

Background and Purpose
According to WHO statistics, approximately 6.9 billion people worldwide had been vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 as at October 27, 2021, including around 1.0 billion people in India. Most Indian recipients received the Covishield (ChAdOx1-S/ nCoV-19) vaccine, followed by the Covaxin (an inactivated SARS-CoV-2 antigen) vaccine. This study was conducted to characterize the neurological phenotypic spectrum of patients with adverse events following immunization with any of the available COVID-19 vaccines in India (Covishield or Covaxin) during the study period and their temporal relationship with vaccination.
Methods
This ambispective multicenter hospital-based cohort study covered the period from March to October 2021. The study included all cases suspected of having neurological complications following COVID-19 vaccination.
Results
We report a spectrum of serious postvaccination neurological complications comprising primary central nervous system demyelination (4 cases), cerebral venous thrombosis (3 cases), Guillain-Barre syndrome (2 cases), vaccine-induced prothrombotic immune thrombocytopenia syndrome (2 cases), cranial nerve palsies (2 cases), primary cerebral hemorrhage (1 case), vestibular neuronitis (1 case), chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (1 case), generalized myasthenia (1 case), and seizures (1 case).
Conclusions
Although the benefits of vaccination far outweigh its risks, clinicians must be aware of possible serious adverse events associated with COVID-19 vaccinations.

Keyword

coronavirus vaccine; neurologic disease; acute inflammatory demyelinating; polyradiculoneuropathy; chronic inflammatory demyelinating; polyradiculoneuropathy; cerebrovascular disorders