Chairperson of Vaccines Evaluation Team at the European Medicines Agency (EMA), Marco Cavaleri, has revealed that there seems to be a connection between AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine and rare blood clots in the brain.
In an interview published on Tuesday, Marco Cavaleri noted that while the investigation into the blood clots resulting from AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine is ongoing, it is clear that there is some sort of association between the blood clots in the brain and the vaccine.
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The EMA official provided no evidence to corroborate the claims made during the interview but said the EMA is expected to publish the findings of the investigation this week.
EMA is investigating 44 cases of an extremely rare brain clotting disorder known as Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis (CVST) out of 9.2 million people in the European Economic Area who have received AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Despite the ongoing investigation, the EMA has repeatedly stated that the benefits of AstraZeneca’s vaccine in preventing COVID-19 infection and its complications continue to outweigh any risks. UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and World Health Organization (WHO) also share the same point of view.
The latest development comes as more than a dozen countries, mostly in Europe, have suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s Coronavirus vaccine as a precautionary measure after a number of people suffered blood clots and brain hemorrhages after receiving the vaccine.
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Earlier this week, MHRA, UK’s apex healthcare regulator, confirmed that 7 out of 30 people in the UK who developed blood clots in the brain after receiving AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine died.
MHRA stated that it is still unclear if these cases are only a coincidence or a genuine side effect, adding that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh the risks.
Note that Pakistan will also import 45 million doses of AstraZeneca’s Coronavirus vaccine through COVAX. 15 million doses will reach Pakistan during H1 2021 while the remaining 30 million doses will be procured during H2 2021.
