Vials containing AstraZeneca coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine during the first day of a mass vaccination by police and firefighters at Wanda Metropolitan Stadium.
Marcos del Mazo | LightRocket | Getty Images
The World Health Organization said on Wednesday that the vaccination of coronavirus vaccines using the AstraZeneca-Oxford University shot should continue while conducting a safety review.
The latest guidelines from the global public health body come after a series of European countries announced that they would suspend the use of the shot due to concerns that it could be linked to cases of blood clots in the region.
The WTO’s Vaccine Safety Advisory Committee has reviewed the available information on the vaccine. The WHO issued a statement on Wednesday saying that “vaccination against COVID-19 will not reduce diseases or deaths due to other causes.”
“Thrombo-embolic events are known to occur frequently. Venous thrombo-embolism is the third most common cardiovascular disease worldwide,” he said.
It said that while it was a routine for countries to indicate potential adverse events after vaccination, especially in mass vaccination campaigns, “it does not necessarily mean that the events are linked to vaccination itself.”
Nevertheless, it added: “it is good practice to investigate this. It also shows that the surveillance system is working and that effective controls have been put in place.”
The WHO is in regular contact with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and regulators around the world for the latest information on the safety of the Covid-19 vaccine, he added.
The WHO said it would communicate the findings to the public immediately once the investigation is complete. “At present, the WHO considers that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh the risks and recommends that vaccinations continue,” he added.
‘An ongoing process’
Sweden, Lithuania and Latvia on Tuesday became the latest countries to suspend the use of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to blood clot problems, in the footsteps of Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Ireland, among other European countries. More than a dozen European countries have temporarily suspended the use of the vaccine.
Emer Cooke, the executive director of the EMA, said at a press conference on Tuesday that an overview of the safety of the shot is an ongoing process, but said that in a mass-point program of millions of people it was not unexpected to have a receive few reports of adverse events. .
Experts put together by the EMA had the task, she said, of deciding whether there was a causal link between the handful of blood clot side effects and the vaccine.
“It requires a very thorough analysis of all the data,” Cooke said. “At the moment, there is no indication that vaccination has caused these events,” she reiterated, adding that the key health benefits of the vaccination program and the AstraZeneca shot in it still outweigh the risks.
“Thousands of people die every day in the EU … these are very rare thromboembolic events or blood clots.” The conclusion of the EMA’s review is expected on Thursday.
Surprised health experts
The strategy of these EU countries has surprised health experts and caused concern that confidence in the vaccine could further damage and delay an already sluggish vaccination program in the bloc, while many countries are seeing an increase in infections due to more contagious coronavirus variant.
Some analysts have questioned whether the decision has a political dimension, given previous doubts about AstraZeneca’s trial data, efficacy at age 65 (various studies have shown it to be very effective in treating Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths). reduce) and disputes over vaccine supplies.
Not all European countries have stopped using the shot. Belgium, Poland and the Czech Republic have all said they will continue to use the shot, saying the benefits outweigh the risks. Belgium went further, and its health minister said the disruption of the vaccination program would be ‘irresponsible’.
AstraZeneca has defended its vaccine thoroughly and said in a statement on Sunday that the number of blood clots recorded after vaccination is lower than can be expected to occur naturally.