Slovakia Suspends Use Of AstraZeneca Vaccine Over Side Effects - Health Ministry

Slovakia Suspends Use of AstraZeneca Vaccine Over Side Effects - Health Ministry

Slovakian Health Minister Vladimir Lengvarsky has held expert consultations and decided to suspend the further use of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine after an inoculated woman died from thrombosis, a spokeswoman for the health ministry said on Tuesday.

PRAGUE (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) Slovakian Health Minister Vladimir Lengvarsky has held expert consultations and decided to suspend the further use of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine after an inoculated woman died from thrombosis, a spokeswoman for the health ministry said on Tuesday.

"Currently, the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine will only be given to people who have already received the first shot of this vaccine and are waiting for the second one. The further use of this vaccine has been suspended," Zuzana Eliashova said.

The Slovak State Institute for Drug Control confirmed the death of a 47-year-old woman from blood-clotting after she was administered the AstraZeneca vaccine, labeled Vaxzevria, last week.

The AstraZeneca vaccine has long been under scrutiny over multiple deaths from blood clotting in recipients in different countries. In April, the European Medicines Agency confirmed the dangerous but "very rare" side effect, but nonetheless recommended continuing to use the drug, saying that benefits outweigh risks.

This past Friday, the EU regulator began probing the AstraZeneca vaccine over a different side effect, namely a rare neurological disorder known as the Guillain-Barre syndrome.