Blood Clotting From AstraZeneca Vaccine Is Rare But Extremely Dangerous, Say UK Researchers

Researchers hope the findings will help countries that are relying heavily on AstraZeneca's vaccine to respond to the condition and decide who should receive the shot.

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New Delhi: A new study showed that the blood clot syndrome from Oxford/AstraZeneca Vaccine is extremely rare it can be very severe and carries a high risk of death which can even occur in other healthy and young persons. 

According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, that the syndrome occurred in at least 1 of every 50,000 vaccinated people who were under the age of 50. 

The researchers examined patients suspected of vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT) who presented in UK hospitals between March 22, 2021 and June 6, 2021. Among the 294 patients who were evaluated, 170 had definite and 50 probable cases of VITT. 

"All the patients had received the first dose of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine and presented 5 to 48 days after vaccination." 

"What we have learned in the U.K. is hugely important to other countries," Dr. Sue Pavord, a researcher at Oxford University Hospitals, said during a briefing according to Bloomberg. "If they can recognize this condition and manage it promptly, they can continue with vaccination."

The researcher also said that about half of them had no prior health conditions and the rest had no particular individual risk factors for the syndrome. They found that those with a low platelet count and intracranial hemorrhage had the highest risk the blood clotting syndrome. 

They hope that the findings will help countries that are relying heavily on the AstraZeneca vaccine to respond to the pandemic and can decide who should take the vaccine.