LONDON – Ireland and the Netherlands have joined the growing list of countries that have suspended use of the coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford due to concerns about blood clots.
The Dutch government said on Sunday that the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine would not be used until March 29, while Ireland said earlier in the day that it had temporarily stopped the injection as a precaution.
The World Health Organization has tried to downplay the ongoing safety concerns, saying last week there is no link between the injection and an increased risk of developing blood clots. The United Nations Health Agency has urged countries to continue using the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
Despite this, a number of European countries have already discontinued the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. It has contributed to the woes of the region’s ailing vaccination campaign at a time when the German public health authority has warned that a third wave of coronavirus infections has already begun.
Thailand has also halted the planned use of the vaccine.
The move to suspend its use by Dutch and Irish officials came shortly after the Norwegian Medicines Agency said it had been notified of three health workers being hospitalized for bleeding, blood clots and low platelet counts after receiving it. Oxford AstraZeneca Vaccine. Norway has suspended its Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine program.
Geir Bukholm, Director of the Infection Control and Environmental Health Division at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, said the Norwegian Medicines Agency “would monitor these suspected adverse reactions and take appropriate action in this dire situation”.
Photo taken on November 27, 2020 shows “Nikki” Anniken Hars treating a Covid-19 patient in the intensive care unit at Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet in Oslo, Norway.
JIL YNGLAND | AFP | Getty images
The European drug regulator, the European Medicines Agency, has also said there is no evidence that the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine causes blood clots, adding that it believes the benefits of the vaccine “continue to outweigh the risks”.
The EMA acknowledged that some European countries had discontinued the use of the Oxford AstraZeneca injection, but said vaccinations could be continued while an investigation into cases of blood clots is ongoing.
How did AstraZeneca react?
“A careful review of all available safety data from more than 17 million people vaccinated in the European Union (EU) and the UK with the COVID-19 vaccine AstraZeneca has revealed no evidence of an increased risk of pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis ( DVT) or thrombocytopenia, in a specific age group, gender, batch or in a specific country, “AstraZeneca said in a statement Sunday.
The most common side effects of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine, which does not contain the virus and cannot cause Covid, are usually mild or moderate and improve within days of vaccination.
A health worker holds a box of AstraZeneneca vaccine at the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute in Nonthaburi province on the outskirts of Bangkok.
Chaiwat Subprasom | SOPA images | LightRocket via Getty Images
The pharmaceutical giant said 15 cases of deep vein thrombosis and 22 cases of pulmonary embolism had been reported among the vaccinees in the EU and the UK.
“This is much lower than would naturally be expected in a general population of this size and is comparable to other approved COVID-19 vaccines,” AstraZeneca said.
What do the experts say?
“Covid absolutely causes coagulation disorders and each of the vaccines prevents Covid’s disease, including more severe cases,” said Stephen Evans, professor of pharmaco-epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.
“Therefore, the benefit of the vaccine is highly likely to outweigh any risk of coagulation disorders and the vaccine will prevent other consequences of Covid, including deaths from other causes.”
Evans said it was “perfectly reasonable” to conduct studies on the vaccines and clotting disorders, but added, “It seems like a step too far to take precautions to prevent people from getting vaccines that would prevent disease.”
Many high-income countries – such as the UK, France, Australia and Canada – have chosen to go ahead with their respective introduction of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine.
“If clear evidence of serious or life-threatening side effects emerges, it will have important implications,” Adam Finn, professor of pediatrics at the University of Bristol, said in a statement.
“However, it has not been so far and it is highly undesirable to disrupt a complex and urgent program whenever people develop illnesses after receiving a vaccine that are accidental and not causally related. Making the right call in situations like this is not easy, but having a steady hand at the helm is probably what is needed most, ”Finn said.