Melbourne blood-clotting case 'likely' linked to AstraZeneca vaccine, Deputy CMO says
- by Carmen Reese
- in Science
- — Apr 3, 2021
"On the basis of this ongoing review, the benefits of the vaccines against Covid-19 continue to outweigh any risks and you should continue to get your vaccine when invited to do so", the MHRA said.
It previously declared the AstraZeneca vaccine safe, just as the World Health Organization did.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration is investigating the man's case with expert input from counterparts in Europe and the United Kingdom, where a small number of similar cases have appeared in recipients of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
No cases of "CVST" have been reported in Australia to date.
The woman had a lung embolism and a cerebral haemorrhage, Lareb said.
The Netherlands Friday suspended use of the Oxford/AstraZenca vaccine for people under the age of 60, citing concern about an increased risk of blood clots. The vaccine received conditional approval on March 2.
Malaysia has agreed to purchase 66.7 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines from various drug makers and plans to vaccinate at least 80% of the population by February next year.
The AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines have shown "very high levels of protection" against Covid-19, the agency said, adding that "all vaccines and medicines have some side effects".
"People should be particularly alert to severe persistent headaches occurring four to 20 days after vaccination and which are different to the usual pattern of headaches that people may experience at other times and which do not settle with paracetamol or other over the counter painkillers".
A causal link with the AstraZeneca vaccine is yet to be established.
Some countries have restricted use of the AstraZeneca vaccine while others have resumed inoculations, as investigations into reports of rare, and sometimes severe, blood clots continue. Prior to that, the agency disclosed five cases on March 18, out of 11 million shots.
The European Medicines Agency is expected to update its recommendation on this issue on April 7.
The Australian Technical Advisory Group said there would be no change to the clinical guidance on the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine as a result of the EMA's findings. In late March, CSL Ltd. began domestic production of 50 million doses.
