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At a virtual press conference in Geneva, SAGE hailed the single-dose Janssen vaccine – produced by a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson – as a safe and life-saving addition to the three other vaccines it has already approved for use: Pfizer , Moderna and AstraZeneca.
The expert group also noted that coagulation episodes – also known as hypercoagulable events – were a symptom of COVID-19, amid the suspension of the AstraZeneca / Oxford vaccine by several European countries, pending a scientific review.
“ These are products that save lives ”
“The world is in a place where supplies are insufficient to meet the needs of people who need to be vaccinated; it is clear that all of these vaccines are life-saving products, ”said Dr Kate O’Brien, director of the Department of Immunization, Vaccines and Biologics at the World Health Organization (WHO).
She insisted that vaccines “should be used as quickly as possible. People can be confident in their safety, efficiency and the quality of the manufacture of the products. “
In the Janssen vaccine trials involving nearly 44,000 people, 10 of the 22,000 people who received the blank dose developed a blood clot – or thromboembolic events – while 14 of the other 22,000 people who did. been inoculated developed a clot.
“It’s pretty much the same,” said Dr Annelies Wilder-Smith, SAGE technical advisor for both groups. “There is a slight imbalance, but it is still not statistically significant”,
No evidence of vaccine-related clots
“As for the vaccine itself, we haven’t seen it in a trial, there is no reason to believe and no biological causation as far as we now understand, that the vaccine could cause thrombo events. -embolic itself. However, we have to be open to new events and we have to take it seriously. “
Dr Wilder-Smith explained that the people recruited for the vaccination tests were chosen intentionally because they were “at high risk” of developing blood clots.
“COVID really predisposes patients to a hypercoagulable state where indeed most of the deaths that we see in severe cases are due to thromboembolic events,” said Dr Wilder-Smith, ahead of the expected announcement of the European Medical Agency (EMA) on the issue Thursday.
In a statement released on Wednesday relating specifically to the suspension of AstraZenica by certain European countries, the agency said it was “good practice” to investigate possible links that the benefits of the vaccine “outweigh its benefits. risks “and the WHO” recommends that vaccinations continue. “
Infections are heading upwards
The development comes amid an increase in new cases of coronavirus infection globally, rising 10% last week, to more than three million new cases reported.
WHO reported on Wednesday that after peaking in early January 2021 – when there were just under five million cases per week – new cases then declined to around 2.5 million over the course of for the week starting February 15, 2021.
But in the past three weeks, cases have risen again.
This week, the Americas and Europe continue to account for more than 80% of new cases and new deaths, with an increase in new cases in all regions – except Africa, where they have remained the same. than last week.
As of March 17, 2021, 120,164,106 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 2,660,422 deaths, have been reported to WHO.
Over 363,000,000 doses of vaccine have been administered worldwide.
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