by Lorenzo Bernasconi

Gone are the restrictions, but don't let your guard down

The conflict in Ukraine, together with the (albeit limited and belated) easing of restrictions and of the use of an illiberal instrument such as the Italian-style covid pass, has led public opinion in Italy to take less and less interest in the government's choices regarding health policies, as well as in the consequences of those choices.

Although understandable from a psychological point of view, this lack of attention represents a dangerous blank proxy that would allow the government to tighten the noose once again, imposing, at will, new compulsory shots (de jure or de facto) as well as a new package of restrictions, perhaps at the end of the summer and the tourist season.

Therefore on COVID-19, but also on the vaccination campaign and its effects, it is more than ever appropriate to reflect at this time, in order to prevent unpleasant (albeit predictable) surprises next fall.

The study on "Scientific Reports"

In this perspective, a study published by "Scientific Reports" and conducted by a team of researchers from the U.S. Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Israel's Ben Gurion University appears extremely interesting.

This is a survey designed to identify possible statistical correlations between COVID-19 infections, covid vaccination, and increased cardiac arrest and acute coronary syndromes in the 16-39 age group.

The researchers examined weekly data about calls to the emergency medical service (the Israeli 911, to be clear) for verified cases of cardiac arrest or acute coronary syndrome throughout Israel in the period between January 1, 2019 and June 20, 2021, excluding cases due to mechanical trauma (car accidents, fights, etc.) and also excluding situations related to drug abuse. From this enormous amount of information, they selected cases in which the patient fell into the target age group of the study (16-39 years).

Crossing the obtained data with the curve of COVID-19 infections in Israel and with the number of vaccinations administered weekly, they tried to identify possible statistical correlations, and the results are definitely interesting.

The correlation between vaccination and cardiovascular emergencies

The appearance of covid in 2020 did not lead to a statistical increase in cases of cardiac arrest in the target population; rather, there was a slight decrease in case numbers. In contrast, in the first 5 months of 2021 - that is, when an intensive vaccination campaign (the vaccination rate in Israel is among the highest in the world) targeting the age group in question was active in Israel - cardiac arrests in 16- to 39-year-olds increased by 25.7%.

It is not better with acute coronary syndromes: they have indeed seen an increase in 2020, compared to the pre-covid era, of 15.8%; however, in 2021, during the vaccination campaign, there was a further increase of 26%; increase, it should be noted, calculated with respect to 2020 data, therefore already net of the increase related to the pandemic itself, and equivalent to well over 40% more cases than in 2019.

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It is, however, by examining the graphs - which overlap the curve of infections, the curve of vaccine administration and the curve of calls to the emergency service for heart attacks and acute cardiac problems - that it becomes very clear how the peaks of cases of cardiac arrest and acute coronary syndrome overlap almost perfectly with the peaks of doses administered, while the trend of the curve of infections appears completely independent and, indeed, at times of peak cases of COVID-19 there is a slight decrease in the number of cases of acute cardiac problems.

A solid argument against a return to forced vaccinations

Researchers also do not fail to highlight the need to expand, even with reference to other geographical areas, the use of statistical analysis of this kind, involving the emergency services and the health system. Because, they underline, passive monitoring - totally entrusted to the will and the ability of the individual patient who suffers an adverse event to grasp the causal link with the assumption of a given drug or vaccine and to correctly report it to the competent authorities - inevitably leads to an underestimation of side effects.

The results of this study deserve at least to be brought to the attention of the general public; however, we are unlikely to see Bassetti and Pregliasco, famous Italian doctors, analyzing and discussing the work of these researchers in one of the many Italian talk shows where they are now at home.

In part this happens because the analysis in general finds little space in the Italian media, but in part because it is now very clear that Prime Minister Draghi and Health Minister Speranza have decided to bet everything on a mass vaccination, even at the cost of going against any scientific and rational evaluation.

Only an awareness on the part of citizens and a strong civil and cultural resistance can prevent a return of the green pass and a new wave of forced vaccinations. Let us remember that, despite the partial withdrawal of the vaccination pass, we are still governed by Mr. "I am nervous at the thought of any aggregation of more than two people", alias Roberto Speranza, and by Mr. "You do not vaccinate, you get sick, you die or you make die", a.k.a. Mario Draghi.

This is no time to let our guard down.

Research Fellow at the Machiavelli Center for Political and Strategic Studies, formerly worked as a consultant at European Parliament, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Chamber of Deputies and Ministry of Economic Development. M.A. in Philosophy at the Catholic University of Milan.