A health worker prepares a syringe with the AstraZeneca Covid-19 dose at the hospital in the city of Coria, Spain.
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LONDON – Health experts say they are disappointed and confused by the rain of coronavirus vaccine suspensions developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, which warns that there is not yet enough data to justify these decisions.
On Tuesday, Sweden and Latvia joined a fast-growing list of European countries that suspended the use of the vaccine as a precautionary measure following reports of blood clots. On Monday, Germany, France, Italy and Spain said they would stop administering the shooting.
Other countries, such as Austria, have temporarily stopped the use of certain batches of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. On Friday, Thailand became the first Asian nation to stop firing for security reasons.
The UK, Canada and Australia, which continue to deploy the vaccine, are some of the countries that want to reassure citizens about its benefits.
The World Health Organization, the European Medicines Regulator and the International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis have recommended that countries continue to use the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
There are still no data signs that really justify these decisions.
Michael Head
Senior Researcher in Global Health at the University of Southampton
“The decisions from France, Germany and other countries seem baffling,” said Dr Michael Head, a senior researcher in global health at the University of Southampton, UK.
“The data we have suggest that the number of adverse events related to blood clots is the same (and possibly, in fact, lower) in vaccinated groups compared to unvaccinated populations,” he continued.
“Stopping the deployment of a vaccine during a pandemic has consequences. This translates into delays in the protection of people and the potential for increased hesitation, as a result of people who have seen the headlines and who are they understand that they are concerned. There is still no sign of any data that really justifies these decisions, “Head added.
WHO experts will meet on Tuesday to review the safety of the shooting.
The European Medicines Agency, which also assesses the safety of the medicine, has said there is no evidence that it causes blood clots, adding that it believes the benefits of the vaccine “continue to outweigh its risks”.
What did AstraZeneca say?
More than 17 million people in the European Union and the UK have received a dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, with less than 40 cases of blood clots reported last week, AstraZeneca said in a statement.
The pharmaceutical giant said that across the EU and the UK there had been 15 events of deep vein thrombosis and 22 events of pulmonary embolism among the vaccinated.
“This is much lower than expected to occur naturally in a general population of this size and is similar in other licensed COVID-19 vaccines,” AstraZeneca said.
The EMA has also stated that the data available so far show that the number of blood clots in vaccinated people is not higher than in the general population.
A bottle of AstraZeneca vaccine.
Igor Petyx | CONTROLLED LightRocket using Getty Images
Europe’s drug caution has exacerbated the disease problems of the region’s vaccination campaign and comes at a time when the German public health agency has warned that a third wave of infections has already begun. coronavirus.
Associate Professor at the University of Leeds School of Medicine Stephen Griffin said the news that many European countries had suspended the launch of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was “disappointing”.
“Given that many European countries are currently experiencing a new resurgence of SARS-CoV2 infections and are still lagging behind in terms of deployment, the importance of continuing vaccination programs cannot be underestimated and the damage caused by depriving them of ‘People’s access to the vaccine is likely to far outweigh even the worst of cases if some link is finally found with the coagulation disorders,’ Griffin said.
“It should also be noted that gestures like this across the country are bound to fuel the hesitation, or the most extreme anti-vaccine sentiment, which further undermines the vaccination effort,” he added.
How does the vaccine work?
The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is a trait designed to prevent coronavirus in people over 18 years of age. It consists of an adenovirus that has been modified to contain the gene to make a protein from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. As such, the vaccine does not contain the virus and cannot cause Covid.
The most common side effects of the shot are typically mild or moderate and improve a few days after vaccination.
Final-stage clinical trials showed that the AstraZeneca-Oxford trait had an average efficacy of 70% in protection against the virus.
“We are carefully reviewing the reports, but the available evidence does not suggest that the vaccine is the cause,” said Dr Phil Bryan, head of vaccine safety at the UK Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency.
“Blood clots can occur naturally and are not uncommon. More than 11 million doses of the AZ vaccine have been given across the UK and the number of blood clots reported after having it is not it is higher than the number that would have occurred naturally in the vaccinated population, “he continued.
“We are working closely with their international counterparts to understand the global safety experience of COVID-19 vaccines and to quickly share safety data and reports. People should go and get the COVID-19 vaccine when they are vaccinated. he asked, “Bryan said. .