After being vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine, two new cases of atypical blood clots in the brain were reported in France, the French National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Medical Products (ANSM) said.
The ANSM report notes that one of the cases ended in a fatal outcome — a woman over the age of 60 years died. Since the start of the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine in France, 30 cases of rare types of thrombosis have already been reported, which led to nine deaths of vaccinated people, the medical agency said. The new two cases occurred between 23 and 29 April. In total, more than 3.8 million people have been vaccinated with this vaccine in France.
Since March 19, at the direction of the medical authorities, the AstraZeneca vaccine has been used only for people in the age group over 55 years old. Currently, vaccinations with this vaccine are allowed for everyone, provided that unused doses remain in the vaccination centers. Many people refuse to be vaccinated with this drug, the radio station France Info noted.
ANSM also reported that for another vaccine, Pfizer/BioNTech, there were two mentions of “potentially possible adverse effects” between April 16 and 20. Recently, data were obtained on six new cases of acute pancreatitis observed after Pfizer/BioNTech vaccinations, one of which resulted in the death of the patient. “Due to the emergence of new cases, all previous cases reported since the start of vaccination have been re-examined,” the ANSM said.
An analysis of all 15 cases of acute pancreatitis showed that in a third of them they were observed in people who had previously had pathologies associated with pancreatitis or a violation of the biliary tract. As reported by ANSM, the information collected in France, which represents a “potential danger signal”, will be transmitted to organizations at the pan-European level.
At the same time, the statement of the French medical authority notes that these cases do not affect the ratio between the benefits and possible risks associated with the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, of which 15.8 million people were vaccinated in the country by April 29.
On the eve of the report of the Paul Ehrlich Institute for the Development of Vaccines and Biomedical Medicines, it became known that after vaccination against coronavirus with Vaxzevria, which was developed by the British-Swedish company AstraZeneca together with the University of Oxford, at least 67 cases of thrombosis were recorded in Germany.
In April, the European Pharmaceutical Regulator recognized the connection of the AstraZeneca vaccine with blood clots. Some EU countries have suspended vaccination with this drug due to reported thromboembolic complications in vaccinated patients. The European regulator is investigating the incidents, but for now, it considers it possible to continue vaccination. Meanwhile, AstraZeneca announced a name change to Vaxzevria amid reports of blood clots being detected in those who received the vaccine.
