15-Year-Old Fully Vaccinated Boy Dies Of COVID-19 Just 5 Days After Hospitalization

A 15-year-old boy in India died after contracting COVID-19, authorities said Wednesday.

The teenager had received both doses of the coronavirus vaccination before getting infected. Authorities said the teen, identified by his first name Shubham, was admitted to a medical college in Meerut – a city in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, Outlook India reported.

The boy was suffering from fever and breathing issues, Ghaziabad Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr. R K Gupta said. Shubham died five days after being admitted to the hospital due to a decrease in oxygen level, authorities said.

Gupta said his family members and those who came in contact with him were being monitored for any symptoms of COVID-19, News 18 reported [Google Translate showed].

It remains unclear how the boy had contracted the virus. Local media reports said he had tested positive last week, but the exact date was not known. Authorities also did not reveal if the teenager had any underlying health condition.

The latest death comes as India is witnessing an uptick in the number of COVID-19 cases. India reported 18,819 new COVID-19 cases and 39 deaths in the last 24 hours, data from the Union health ministry showed Thursday. As many as 13,827 patients recovered from the infection, with total active cases standing at 104,555. The state of Uttar Pradesh reported 3,767 COVID-19 cases Wednesday.

The total number of deaths in the country since the beginning of the pandemic is 525,116.

Those between the 15-18 age group are eligible for Bharat Biotech's Covaxin.

In April, India’s drug regulator also approved the emergency use of two COVID-19 vaccines, Biological E’s Corbevax and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, for children under the age of 12 years. The decision sets up the stage to protect young children from the coronavirus disease. However, it remains unclear when the vaccination drive would begin.

The head of the World Health Organization said Wednesday the pandemic is changing, but is not over, More than 10 countries are witnessing a rise in COVID-19 cases, which is being driven mainly by two fast-spreading Omicron sub-variants.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said this week the fast-spreading Omicron sub-variants BA.4 and BA.5 together are estimated to make up half of the coronavirus cases in the United States.