Scientists in Europe said recently they have found a possible reason why some recipients of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine suffered from brain blood clots, The Wall Street Journal reports.
- Two separate teams from Norway and Germany found that the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine “could trigger an autoimmune disorder causing blood to clot in the brain, which would offer an explanation for isolated incidents across Europe in recent weeks,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
The discovery comes days after several European countries — like France — halted the distribution of the AstraZeneca vaccine since people reported suffering blood clots.
- “The issue affected a tiny portion of those who had received the shot, however, and after investigating, the European drugs regulator ruled that the benefits outweighed the potential risks of the vaccine, and recommended vaccinations resume,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
In fact, the European Medicines Agency said the vaccine “will prevent vastly more illness and death than it might cause” from the blood clot issue, according to The New York Times. Basically, the benefits of being vaccinated against COVID-19 outweigh the risks of the rare disorder.
“Officials want to bolster confidence in a crucial vaccine, and in a stumbling European inoculation campaign that has fueled mistrust of governments across the continent,” according to The New York Times.
The United States has yet to approve the vaccine for distribution. But the Biden administration is reportedly finalizing some plans to send the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to Mexico and Canada, according to NBC News.
The U.S. would send 2.5 million doses to Mexico and 1.5 million does to Canada. However, the U.S. is still waiting for more data on the vaccine before sending it to those countries, NBC News reports.