WASHINGTON DC – U.S. federal authorities on Tuesday recommended “stopping” the administration of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson to investigate reports of potentially dangerous blood clots in which at least one woman died in that moment .
In a joint statement, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said they were investigating thrombi detected in six women in the days after vaccination, combined with a low platelet count.
Federal officials told a news conference Tuesday that all affected women are between the ages of 18 and 48. One woman died and a second woman in Nebraska was hospitalized in serious condition.
“I know people are worried. If they received the vaccine a month ago, they don’t have to worry. If they received the vaccine a few days ago, then they should be aware if they are experiencing any of the dangerous symptoms, “CDC Deputy Director Anne Schuchat said in a conference call.
The “dangerous” symptoms are different from the flu-like symptoms that can be experienced in the hours or days after the vaccine is given, Schuchat explained. These include: headache, abdominal pain, leg pain or breathing problems three weeks after the injection.
In the United States, more than 6.8 million doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been administered, which is a single dose.
Currently, this vaccine accounts for only a small percentage of vaccines administered in the US due.
Jeff Zients, director of the team responsible for the federal government’s response to the pandemic, said the break in Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine will not affect the national vaccination campaign.
“We have over 25 million doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines available each week … that’s more than enough to continue at the current rate of about 3 million vaccinations a day,” Zients said in a statement.
VACCINE USE STOPPED IN FEDERAL CENTERS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES
Federal distribution channels, including mass vaccination centers, will temporarily cease using the drug, and states and other providers are expected to do the same.
Two other vaccines, Moderna and Pfizer, contain the vast majority of inoculations administered in the United States and are not affected by hiatus.
The CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meets Wednesday to study the cases. The FDA has begun its own investigation.
“Until the trial is complete, we recommend a break in the use of this vaccine as a precaution,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, CDC’s deputy director, and Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biological Evaluation and Research, in a joint statement.
DANGEROUS SYMPTOMS OF JOHNSON & JOHNSON VACCINE
Agencies recommend that those who have received Johnson & Johnson vaccine and have experienced headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath three weeks after the injection see their doctor.
Authorities said they want to train vaccine manufacturers and health professionals on the “single treatment” for these blood clots.
JOHNSON & JOHNSON’S RESPONSE TO BLOOD CLEANS
Johnson & Johnson claimed to be aware of the clots, but insisted that a link to its vaccine had not yet been unequivocally established.
“We are aware of thromboembolic events, including some with thrombocytopenia, which have been reported in connection with COVID-19 vaccines,” the company said in a statement. “So far, no clear causal relationship has been established between these unusual events and the vaccine,” he added.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine was discarded as an emergency resource by the FDA in late February, with great ceremony, in the hope that, requiring a single dose and relatively mild storage conditions, it will stimulate the nationwide vaccination campaign.