Denmark became at least the sixth European country to reduce the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine after some people who received it developed blood clots.
Health officials say they are investigating the cases, but so far there is no evidence that the outbreak of the British drug maker has caused clots.
The Danish Health and Medicines Authority stopped the release of AstraZeneca’s sting for at least two weeks on Thursday after “serious cases” of blood clots in vaccinated people, one of which was linked to a death.
Danish officials say they should take time to investigate these incidents, although there is good evidence that the AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and effective.
Magnus Heunicke, Minister of Health of Denmark, said it is not yet clear if there is a link between the shot and the blood clots. Danish officials expect European Union authorities to investigate the possible link.
“Right now we need all the vaccines we can get. Therefore, pausing one of the vaccines is not an easy decision, “said Søren Brostrøm, director of the Danish National Health Board, in a statement.” But precisely because we vaccinate so many people, we must also respond carefully timely when possible serious side effects are known “.
Denmark’s decision came after five EU countries (Austria, Estonia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Latvia) stopped using single-batch doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine this week due to blood clot problems.
Three people in Austria have developed blood clots after receiving the sting, including one who died 10 days after vaccination, according to the European Medicines Agency, the EU drug regulator.
A fourth patient developed a pulmonary embolism, a condition in which a blockage forms in the arteries of the lungs, officials said.
The European Medicines Agency said there was “currently no evidence” that AstraZeneca’s vaccine caused these conditions, which are not listed as side effects of the vaccine.
EU officials are investigating the quality of the affected batch, which includes about a million doses delivered to 17 countries, although “at this time a quality defect is considered unlikely,” the agency said.
In total, 22 cases of blood clots had been reported among the 3 million people who had received the AstraZeneca vaccine in the European Economic Area in 29 countries, officials said.
“The information available so far indicates that the number of thromboembolic events in vaccinated people is not higher than in the general population,” the European Medicines Agency said in a statement on Wednesday.
An AstraZeneca spokesman noted that vaccine safety has been studied “extensively” in clinical trials and that peer-reviewed data have confirmed that the shot “is generally well tolerated.”
“Patient safety is AstraZeneca’s top priority,” the company spokesman said in a statement. “Regulators have clear and strict efficacy and safety rules for the approval of any new drug, and this includes the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine.”