EMA Holding the Key to Resuming Europe's AZ Vaccination: "No Signs of Thrombosis"

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[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] As European countries have successively suspended AstraZeneca (AZ) COVID-19 vaccine inoculations, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) stated on the 16th (local time) that "there are no signs that the vaccine causes blood clots."

EMA Chief Executive Officer Emer Cook said at an online press conference that "thousands of people across Europe develop blood clots each year for various reasons. Also, there have been no reports of increased blood clots in the AZ vaccine clinical trials." She reaffirmed the existing position that "the benefits of the AZ vaccine outweigh the risks."

However, since EMA holds the key to whether AZ vaccine use will resume in Europe, it is currently evaluating related cases individually. EMA plans to review new information further at the Safety Committee meeting on the same day and reach a conclusion at a meeting scheduled for the 18th.

Sweden also announced that it will temporarily suspend the use of the AZ vaccine as a precaution until the EMA investigation is completed. Among the 27 European Union (EU) member countries, the number of countries that have suspended the use of all or part of their AZ vaccine doses has increased to 19.

Starting with Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Bulgaria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Slovenia have temporarily suspended the use of all their AZ vaccine stocks. Austria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Luxembourg have suspended the use of specific batches linked to deaths in Austria, while Romania has suspended specific batches linked to deaths in Italy.

Outside the EU member states, Cyprus has also suspended AZ vaccine inoculations. Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Venezuela have postponed the start of vaccinations. In total, at least 23 countries worldwide have suspended AZ vaccine inoculations. These countries have stated they will delay vaccinations until the World Health Organization (WHO) completes its review. However, the WHO also maintains that there is no causal relationship between the vaccine and blood clot formation and sees no reason to stop using the AZ vaccine.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.