MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australia will continue its inoculation program with AstraZeneca PLC, health officials said on Saturday, after a case of blood clotting raised concerns about vaccine safety.
A 44-year-old man was admitted to a Melbourne hospital with clotting, days after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine, suffering from severe thrombosis, a condition that prevents normal blood flow through the circulatory system.
The Regulator of Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and a group, the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ATAGI), met on Friday afternoon and early Saturday to discuss further advice on the AstraZeneca vaccine.
“Neither ATAGI nor the TGA have advised us at this time to pause the launch of the AstraZeneca vaccine in Australia,” Australian Deputy Medical Director Michael Kidd told a television session on Saturday afternoon.
Kidd said, however, that the case of blood clotting is “likely” related to the vaccine.
“The risks of serious side effects remain very low, but safety is paramount and that is why TAGI and TGA continue to take the necessary diligence on this case,” Kidd said, adding that more announcements would come next week. .
On Thursday, Britain identified 30 cases of low blood clots after using the vaccine. Several nations, including Canada, France, Germany, and Spain, limited its use after similar reports.
Possible complications with the deployment of the AstraZeneca vaccine could further slow down the already delayed inoculation in Australia.
Australia launched massive vaccines for its 25 million people in February, and most are expected to receive the vaccine from Oxford University / AstraZeneca, as CSL Ltd. produces 50 million doses nationwide.
However, the country has had trouble deploying the program and has lost a March target of about 3.3 million doses as states and the federal government were vying for the blame.
The problems stem from a year of significant success in curbing the virus, with instant blockages, border closures and rapid follow-up that limited coronavirus infections to just under 29,300 infections, with 909 deaths from COVID-19.
On Saturday, the state of Queensland, the epicenter of the most recent small outbreak of coronavirus, registered a new infection, health officials said, but the risks to the public were minimal as the victim had been isolated for days.
(Global Vaccination Follower: here)
(Interactive graphic monitoring of the global spread of coronavirus: here)
Report by Lidia Kelly; Edited by Clarence Fernandez and William Mallard