Denmark has become at least the sixth European country to reduce the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, after some people who received it developed blood clots.
Health officials say they are investigating the cases, but there is no evidence so far that the British drugmaker’s injection caused the clots.
The Danish Health and Medicines Authority suspended the launch of the AstraZeneca jab for at least two weeks on Thursday after “serious cases” of blood clots in vaccinated people, one of which was related to a death.
Danish authorities say they need time to investigate these incidents, although there is good evidence that the AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and effective.
Magnus Heunicke, Minister of Health of Denmark, said it is not yet clear if there is a connection between the injection and blood clots. Danish authorities are waiting for the European Union authorities to investigate the possible link.
“At the moment, we need all the vaccines we can get. Therefore, pausing one of the vaccines is not an easy decision, ”said Søren Brostrøm, director of the National Health Council of Denmark, in a statement. “But, precisely because we vaccinate many, we also need to respond with timely care when we are aware of possible serious side effects.”
Denmark’s decision came after five EU countries – Austria, Estonia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Latvia – stopped using doses of a single batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine this week due to problems with blood clots.
Three people in Austria developed blood clots after receiving the vaccine, including one who died 10 days after vaccination, according to the European Medicines Agency, the EU’s drug regulator.
A fourth patient developed pulmonary embolism, a condition in which a blockage in the arteries of the lungs forms, officials said.
The European Medicines Agency said that “there is currently no indication” that the AstraZeneca vaccine caused these diseases, which are not listed as side effects of the injection.
EU officials are investigating the quality of the affected batch – which includes about 1 million doses delivered to 17 countries – although “a quality defect is considered unlikely at this stage,” the agency said.
In all, 22 cases of blood clots were reported by Tuesday among the 3 million people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine in the 29 countries of the European Economic Area, officials said.
“The information available so far indicates that the number of thromboembolic events in vaccinated persons is not greater than that observed in the general population,” said the European Medicines Agency in a statement on Wednesday.
An AstraZeneca spokesman noted that the vaccine’s safety has been “extensively studied” in clinical trials and peer-reviewed data confirmed that the injection is “generally well tolerated”
“Patient safety is the highest priority for AstraZeneca,” said the company’s spokesman in a statement. “Regulators have clear and rigorous efficacy and safety standards for the approval of any new drug, and that includes the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine.”