Debate on side effects of covid vaccine is still on. As few clotting cases were found. The number of bleeding and clotting events following a Covid vaccine injection in India are “miniscule” and “in line with the expected number of diagnoses of these conditions”, a panel on AEFI (adverse events following immunisation) told the Union Health Ministry Monday afternoon.
The panel said it had studied 498 (of 700) “serious and severe events” and found that only 26 had been reported as “potential thromboembolic events”, referring to the potentially fatal formation of a blood clot that could break loose and be carried by the blood stream to block another vessel.
The panel further said Covishield – the AstraZeneca-Oxford University vaccine linked by some studies to clotting issues – reported fewer than 0.61 cases per million doses administered.
Nevertheless, the ministry has advised people to be aware of suspected thromboembolic events.
Symptoms to watch out for include breathlessness, pain in the chest or limbs, pinhead-sized red spots or bruising of skin in areas other than the injection site and persistent abdominal pain.
The AstraZeneca vaccine, or Covishield, as it is known in India, is one of the cheapest shots available today and is widely seen as a key weapon in the fight against COVID-19, particularly for poor nations.