inp.polri.go.id – South Africa's health regulator reported the death of a person linked to Johnson & Johnson's (J&J) receipt of the Covid-19 vaccine on Thursday (4/8). This is the first time this link has been found in South Africa. Scientists say one person in South Africa developed a rare neurological disorder, Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS), shortly after receiving the J&J vaccine. The person was then put on a ventilator, however he still can’t survive and passed away. "At any other time, no other disease that can give rise to Guillain-Barre Syndrome has been identified," said professor Hannelie Meyer. However, age and other personal details regarding the patient were not disclosed for confidentiality reasons. Meanwhile, J&J has not responded to a request for comment submitted by Reuters via email. Despite these reports, the Chief Executive of the Health Products Regulatory Authority of South Africa (SAHPRA), Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela, believes that the benefits of vaccination still outweigh the risks. "Under our circumstances, we have administered about nine million doses of Janssen [J&J] vaccine, and this is the first time [vaccination] has been associated with a case of GBS," he said. Semete-Makokotlela also said that the authorities had checked about 160 deaths since the Covid-19 vaccination began. However, this is the first time they have found a causal relationship between vaccination and mortality. Meanwhile, the risks of J&J vaccines and GBS have been detected since July. In July, US authorities added a warning to J&J's vaccine data. The agency found an increased risk of GBS in the six weeks following vaccination. At that time, the US received 100 reports related to GBS from recipients of the vaccine. A total of 95 reports are serious cases. South Africa itself uses J&J and Pfizer vaccines in their Covid-19 vaccination campaign. About 46% of the country's adult population has been fully vaccinated.