Irish health officials acted on Sunday to halt the distribution of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, citing concerns raised by officials in Norway about a possible blood clotting problem.
Reuters reported that the Irish authorities said the measure was taken “out of caution”, explaining that the authorities reported cases of blood clotting problems in recipients of the AstraZeneca vaccine similar to those reported by several Norwegian health professionals who took the vaccine .
Similar reports have emerged in Denmark, and Ireland joins that country alongside Norway and Iceland in the decision to suspend distribution of the vaccine. AstraZeneca injection has not yet been authorized for emergency use in the USA
“It may be nothing, we may be overreacting and I sincerely hope that in a week we will be accused of being overly cautious,” Ireland’s deputy health minister told RTE, an Irish broadcaster.
“We hope to have data to reassure us in a few days and we will be back with that”, continued the minister.
An Italian region made a similar decision on Sunday, according to Reuters, after a recipient of the vaccine died.
World Health Organization (WHO) officials said there was no clear evidence of a link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clotting problems, a statement echoed by the company itself. The vaccine is one of several that are being included in the WHO-led COVAX effort to distribute doses to the poorest nations.
“There will be people who have been immunized and will die from other causes. So far, the preliminary data we have seen does not lead to a causal relationship, ”said Mariângela Simão, vice-general of WHO.