Astrazeneca vaccine suspended..... Not proven to be linked to the jab yet, but investigations are ongoing *title edited by GNHQ*

SpringyChicken

In any given week, some of the population will experience blood clots, whether they have had a vaccination or not. Given the mass vaccination program in hand, it’s to be expected therefore that some people will have a clot following a vaccination.

I just checked. You're right. Between 1 and 2 people in a 1000 have a blood clot every year.

I don't know how many people have had the AZ jab. Let's say 10 million. In the two or so months since it was rolled out, a number just over 1,500 people would have blood clots anyway.

Blood clotting IS associated with Covid my sister and her husband have both been hospitalized in the US with blood clots, it’s quite worrying they both had the jab but I don’t know which one. Both home and seem OK now

I was asking a medic friend about it, it’s common, Covid makes the blood sticky and blood thinners are used in most cases he sees. Maybe a reaction to vaccine if you have already had mild Covid or maybe just those that are predisposed to clots.

I must admit I’m a bit concerned.
I’ve had the AZ jab ( no side effects ) but won’t have the 2nd dose if these reports keep coming out.

I have had my 1st vaccine but as I am already on blood thinners for a heart problem I am going to assume I am covered. Fingers crossed.

It is obviously only a handful of people who are affected, such as with certain medications. It'd be nothing new if someone had an adverse effect after any vaccination.

My INR could have been low at the time of the vaccination, I don't know. A low reading indicates that you're more prone to clotting, whereas a higher reading indicates a propensity to bleeding, so as you can appreciate the INR has to be within ratio to function as normal.

Thankyou Blossoming I'm alright now.

It is very difficult to ascertain which health events are associated with a particular vaccine and which would have happened anyway - ones which the same proportion of the population would normally experience as the proportion of those vaccinated with the AZ vaccine.

As a theoretical example (I have to state that or it will be all round the internet in 3 seconds that CoVid vaccines cause instability!!!!) it is pretty likely that some of those vaccinated will have tripped and had a fall within three weeks of the jab. If statistics showed the percentage to be twice that of people who have not had that vaccine, then it could be assumed there may well be a connection. If it was shown to be the same, then the vaccination had nothing to do with it.

Trisher posted "There is an article from the BMJ here www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n699
They state that instances of blood clotting in the vaccinated population is no higher than normal." If you are worried, then for goodness sake read it.

4 out of how many? If it is out of 10, then yes I would be worried. If it is out of 10,000 then that is fine.

For those who don't/can't follow links, the BMJ's response includes (The bold highlighting is mine) :-

The EMA’s safety committee "is reviewing the issue but said that there was currently no indication that vaccination has caused these conditions, which are not listed as side effects. It said that the information available so far showed that the number of thromboembolic events in vaccinated people was no higher than that seen in the general population. It said that, as of 10 March, 30 cases of thromboembolic events had been reported among the five million people given the AstraZeneca vaccine in the European Economic Area."

Phil Bryan, vaccines safety lead for the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, said, “More than 11 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine have now been administered across the UK. Reports of blood clots received so far are not greater than the number that would have occurred naturally in the vaccinated population. ” He added that the agency was keeping the issue under close review but that available evidence did not confirm that the vaccine was the cause.

Thanks, elegran. Just saw the same info on Twitter and was going to post it but no need as you've done it.

Though actually, here is what I saw:
*The UK has given over 10 million doses of both the Oxford and Pfizer vaccine.

Number of blood clot related events:

Oxford = 13

Pfizer = 15

These numbers are no higher than what is seen in the general population (no increased risk).*

Thanks Elegran and Baggs. That puts it all into perspective.

I think we are pissing into the wind here trying to get over to the doubters that the odds are strongly against the vaccine causing these cases of blood clots. It is almost certainly coincidence that they have happened when they did, because they are not happening then any more often than they do in the general population.

The human mind is very self-centred and inaccurate about risk asessment. It hears of an avalanche in a snow-infested country on the other side of the world, and immediately decides to cancel a skiing holiday somewhere completely different which never has an avalanche, but when it reads of a multiple motorway car crash killing several people it still fills up the petrol tank and sets off for the supermarket five minutes away. Most car accidents happen within a few miles of home.

I agree, the heading is misleading, scaremongering at the very least. Of course we need to be informed, but unless people can provide accurate information and proven facts, threads like this are not helpful.
I have multiple comorbidities, am immunosuppressed and had a severe reaction to the AZ vaccine, which I reported. However, as it is not unusual for me to have reactions like this, I will still be having the second vaccine.
As someone who is CEV, I prefer the side effects to catching Covid and dying a horrible death, as predicted by my clinicians.

Marydoll. “ unless people can provide accurate information and proven facts , threads like this are not helpful “
Well said ! I agree.

I ve had it not a bit bothered but I think it will bother a lot of people and i think it will do our programme no good at all and maybe that’s what they want

Baggs where did you get that info can you give a link I d like to have it to prove to doubters ?

*I must admit I’m a bit concerned.
I’ve had the AZ jab ( no side effects ) but won’t have the 2nd dose if these reports keep coming out.* from Kandinsky above.

And therein lies the problem. One scary headline and all the wonderful results are blown out of the water by people who become anxious.

I wish the media would be more careful about how they word things.

I know of people who had Pfizer who have had blood clots as well I suppose all vaccines have some risk .

Sitting for a length of time can cause bloods clots too!
As always, I’ll take the advice of medical professionals, not garish headlines.

Kandinsky

I must admit I’m a bit concerned.
I’ve had the AZ jab ( no side effects ) but won’t have the 2nd dose if these reports keep coming out.

Kandinsky
I had Covid and was hospitalised for twelve days. I was very ill. I would say the minute risk of a blood clot is a risk worth taking, on the grounds it’s almost certain not to happen to you. Being ill enough to be hospitalised with Covid is not a picnic, it’s a serious threat to your life.

BlueBelle As Baggs has not yet replied, I have looked for what she posted and found it at this link to The New Scientist - www.newscientist.com/article/2237475-covid-19-news-astrazeneca-vaccine-not-linked-to-blood-clots-says-who/

Agree with all of the above. I’ve heard about these issues from my fb friends abroad. I’ve received the AZ no side effects whatsoever and will have the second when called.

Jaxjacky

Sitting for a length of time can cause bloods clots too!
As always, I’ll take the advice of medical professionals, not garish headlines.

I agree with you.

The following are all risks for blood clots:

What causes blood clots?
Your body reacts to an injury or cut by clotting your blood just the way it should. These types of clots are not a problem. Sometimes a blood clot will form without a trigger (such as an injury or cut). This is more likely to happen with certain risk factors or conditions. Risk factors include:

Prolonged sitting (often the case with travel when you are forced to sit for long periods in an airplane, a train, or a car)
Prolonged bed rest (often the case with surgery or illness)
Pregnancy
Smoking
Obesity
Birth control pills/hormone replacement therapy/breast cancer medicines
Certain cancer types (pancreatic, lung, multiple myeloma, or blood-related cancers)
Trauma (serious injury)
Some types of major surgery
Age (especially over the age of 60)
A family history of blood clots
Autoimmune disorders
Diseases related to chronic inflammation
Certain infections (HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C, or Lyme disease)

Obviously, most of the above are outside our control and I doubt if there are too many pregnant GNers.

It puzzles me that people don't realise that the risks of Covid to people with some of the above conditions are higher than the risks of blood clots from a vaccine. I'm not medically qualified, so people need to speak to somebody who is.

Two conditions in the list - smoking and obesity - could be controlled. I wonder if there are people who would rather not be vaccinated (because of the risks) than do something about smoking or obesity.

This is interesting. Only last month my husband was called for his jab ahead of his category. He is younger than I am, so I was well miffed at having to wait my turn! His only claim to a potential health problem is an unexplained dvt which cropped up after a flight.
The two things - covid and risk of clots - must to my mind therefore be linked.

They are linked. It's been observed that a higher percentage of people who develop serious Covid have blood clots. AFAIK nobody is quite sure why. It could be something to do with inflammation and the immune response, but who knows?