COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) – Danish officials decided on Thursday to extend the suspension of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine by three weeks as they continue to assess a possible link with blood clots, despite EU regulators examining the issue they have eliminated the vaccine for use.
Denmark’s decision “was taken on the basis of the alleged side effects,” Tanja Erichsen, acting director of pharmacovigilance at the Danish Medicines Agency, said during a press conference.
“It cannot be ruled out that there is a connection between the vaccine and the very rare cases of blood clots,” he said.
Denmark suspended the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine as a precautionary measure on March 11 after reporting that a 60-year-old woman died of blood clots in various parts of her body a week after receiving the vaccine. vaccine, according to health officials.
The death of a second person in Denmark who died after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine was reported. Danish health authorities said they have no evidence that the vaccine was responsible for the death.
“I’d like to point out that I’m not talking about normal blood clots,” Erichsen said. “It’s not about blood clots in the arms, legs and lungs.”
The break will last at least until April 18th. Norway and Sweden also suspended the AstraZeneca vaccine. Most European countries that had put the vaccine on hold continued to administer it after the European Medicines Agency said it was safe last week.
The Swedish Public Health Agency announced on Thursday that it would resume delivery of AstraZeneca to people over the age of 65, but recommends continuing to keep them on hold for other age groups while awaiting additional information. Sweden suspended the administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine on 16 March.
“The vaccine is very useful for the elderly, as many get seriously ill with COVID-19 every day,” Swedish agency director Johan Carlson said in a statement. “At the same time, we have not seen any risk of these rare and serious side effects in the elderly. That’s why we’re canceling the rest for people over 65. ”
Health officials in neighboring Finland said Wednesday afternoon that the country would resume the AstraZeneca vaccine on Monday after a break of more than a week, but would only administer it to people over 65.
Use of the AstraZeneca vaccine was suspended in Finland last Friday after diagnosing cerebral blood clots in two individuals who had received the sting.
According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, more than a million doses of various vaccines have been administered in Denmark, which has a population of about 6 million. The vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna account for most of the blows dealt to the Scandinavian country and some 150,000 people in Denmark have obtained a shot from the AstraZeneca vaccine.
“Many may wonder if we are excessive. To this I will say, “You can say that‘ We have added additional precautionary principles, ’” said the director general of the Danish health authority, Soeren Brostroem.
Brostroem said that when and if Denmark resumes use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, people will have the option to reject the vaccine from the Anglo-Swedish drug manufacturer.
“You can wait and get another one,” he said. Denmark also uses vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna.
The European Medicines Agency has said that the benefits of the vaccine continue to outweigh its risks and that the vaccine can continue to be administered as cases of blood clots continue to be more closely evaluated.
“At this time, we believe that our basis for making a final decision on the subsequent use of the COVID-19 vaccine by AstraZeneca is too uncertain,” Brostroem said. “Many studies have been launched, but we do not yet have conclusions. That is why we have decided to extend the break.”
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Jari Tanner in Helsinki, Finland, contributed to this report