Sweden followed suit with a rapidly expanding list of countries to halt AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccinations on Tuesday until the European regulator completes an investigation into reports of blood clots and bleeding in a small number of vaccinated individuals.
The Swedish Public Health Agency said that no such reports have occurred in Sweden, but is awaiting the results of the investigation by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to determine the casual relationship between coagulation and the vaccine. The EMA said it plans to meet its security committee on Thursday to draw conclusions about the data and take necessary action.
Germany, France, Italy and Spain are among the countries that suspended the use of the vaccine on Monday.
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“The decision is a precautionary measure,” Sweden’s chief epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, said in a statement.
AstraZeneca tried to defend its product earlier this week, saying that a review of more than 17 million vaccinations in the EU and the UK “showed no evidence of an increased risk of pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or thrombocytopenia, in any defined age group, sex, batch or in any specific country. “The company observed 15 events of deep vein thrombosis and 22 events of pulmonary embolism among vaccinated individuals, on March 8.
AstraZeneca says that the number does not exceed the coagulation that occurs naturally in the general population, also echoed by the World Health Organization and EMA. Despite the rapidly growing list of countries to pause injections, the EMA says the vaccine’s benefits outweigh the risks of side effects.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.