Health Desk – 21 Mar,2021: AstraZeneca issued a statement recently to reassure the public about the safety of its COVID-19 vaccine after several European Union (EU) countries halted its use over concerns about blood clots.
The company noted that among more than 17 million people who have received the vaccine in the EU and the United Kingdom, 15 cases of deep venous thrombosis and 22 of pulmonary embolism were reported through March 8.
“This is much lower than would be expected to occur naturally in a general population of this size and is similar across other licensed COVID-19 vaccines,” the company said.
It also noted that in clinical trials, thrombotic events occurred less often in the vaccine than placebo group. AstraZeneca said it “is keeping this issue under close review but available evidence does not confirm that the vaccine is the cause.”
