Support for AstraZeneca vaccine from …

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) on Wednesday confirmed a “possible link” of AstraZeneca with the unusual cases of blood clotting reported in some people who received the vaccine, but approved its continued application. The body dependent on the European Union stressed that the balance of risks and benefits of the drug developed by the Anglo-Swedish laboratory in collaboration with the University of Oxford remains “positive”.

According to the conclusions of the analysis carried out by the EMA Safety Committee (PRAC), “unusual” blood clots with low platelet counts “should be included as very rare side effects” of the drug. AstraZeneca vaccine. The ruling on Wednesday is based on “all the evidence currently available,” including advice from a panel of experts.

EMA specialists were unable to identify a risk factor for thrombosislike age, gender or medical history. A “plausible explanation (for these rare cases of blood clotting) is that there is an immune response to the vaccine” in some people. The PRAC therefore requested new studies to try to collect more information and take the necessary additional measures.

EMA executive director Emer Cooke stressed in a press conference remotely from the agency’s headquarters in Amsterdam that covid-19 is a “very dangerous disease” and that vaccines are “Very important in the fight against the pandemic”, including AstraZeneca, which “has proven to be very effective” against the coronavirus.

“The PRAC confirmed that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine for preventing COVID-19 generally outweigh the risks of side effects“stressed Cooke, who reiterated that” after a thorough analysis it was concluded that the reported cases of unusual blood clots after vaccination should be included as possible side effects of the vaccine“.

In the absence of a defined risk factor, the EMA stresses that it is “important that vaccinees and healthcare professionals are aware of the possibility of developing very rare cases of blood clotting associated with low levels of blood. platelets in the blood within two weeks of vaccination ”.

So far, most of the reported cases have occurred women under 60 within 15 days post-vaccination.

The PRAC thoroughly examined a total of 62 cases of cerebral venous thrombus (CVST) and 24 cases of splanchnic vein thrombosis, reported as of March 22, including 18 fatalities.