A health worker prepares a syringe with a dose of Sinovac’s COVID-19 vaccine at Bang Khun Thian Geriatric Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand on April 21, 2021. REUTERS / Athit Perawongmetha
Thailand will continue to use Sinovac Biotech (SVA.O) COVID-19 vaccine in China after six reports of unusual “stroke-like” side effects among recipients, government-appointed experts said Wednesday.
Six medical staff in Rayong province, east of Bangkok, who were vaccinated earlier this month, have experienced symptoms similar to those of a stroke, the panel of experts said, including drowsiness and numbness in the limbs.
They have since recovered after suffering a stroke and no blood clots were found.
The announcement comes amid heightened global focus on efficacy levels and possible side effects of various COVID-19 vaccines, and temporary suspensions in some countries, including reports of blood clots among some recipients.
Sinovac did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Thailand has received two million doses from the Chinese company CoronaVac, which has already been administered to more than 600,000 people nationwide. It ordered 1.5 million more shots that would arrive soon.
The experts could not say with certainty what caused the symptoms, which they said were related to the nervous system and were not fatal, said Kulkanya Chokephaibulkit of Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok.
Brain scans of all six women showed normal results that did not indicate a stroke, and no irregularities were found in the vaccine group where the six doses originated, Kulkanya said.
Doses of the same group have been distributed to other provinces, and more than 300,000 people may have already received the shots, she added.
“The panel agreed that we can continue to use this vaccine group because the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the temporary consequences that may occur,” Kulkanya said.
No such consequences have been reported in Thailand or other countries before, she added.
The incidents would not change Thailand’s plan to start mass vaccinations from June, said Taweesap Siraprapasiri of the Department of Disease Control.
“The side effects can be monitored and it is no more than we can expect,” Taweesap said.
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