Canada pauses AZ vaccines for under 55s (and says women most at risk)

[Boringlynormal]

Please tell me this isn’t something to worry about: www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/30/canada-suspends-use-of-astrazeneca-covid-vaccine-for-those-under-55

Speaking as a woman in her 30s who was immunised 4 days ago (article tells us the risk is for young women 4 - 20 days after vaccination), I’m panicking now. Yes I know it’s rare but so is dying of Covid in my age group so I’m wondering if I’ve made a huge mistake.

By the way I’m very pro vaccine and leapt on the chance to get one. I’m just feeling so anxious now.

@Dozer

‘Countries’ or ‘Europe’ are not making public statements about safety of vaccines: individuals and specific organisations are, and some publications and commentators are reporting on those statements.

Have regard to the specific sources of statements and any evidence they put forward.

This is not entirely the case. You are correct that Canada are not saying it is not safe, but they are raising a concern over its safety in certain age groups, as are some other European countries.

CNN - "Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommended Monday that the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine should not be used in adults under age 55 while rare cases of serious blood clots following vaccination are being investigated, according to a release from the committee."

Right, so in that case an advisory committee to a government has said X.

I am absolutely convinced that this is why the rollout to under 50s has been paused, they are buying time to decide whether to continue with AZ or change the plan.

I'm a real worrier with health anxiety and I'm not worried about this at all. Female, 30's, mother about 30 days post AZ.

I have had a pulmonary embolism before. I keep getting invited for the vaccine. I'm currently too unwell to go and get it though! I'm wary about getting it. Not entirely opposed, no. If I was well enough to go, I'd have had it about 6 weeks ago when first invited - the thoughts of covid and being in ICU on oxygen or a ventilator terrify me. I'm also scared of being found dead some days after I've died alone. Ideally I'd prefer the Pfizer one as there seems to be less complaints about that one.

I'm surprised I haven't picked up Covid yet. I've been in and out of hospital several times over the past year. I have asthma (is that an autoimmune condition?). The only thing that I think that can account for me not having contracted COVID yet is that my blood type is O negative? I have surely been exposed to it. I'm quite unwell, so I suspect my immune system is weak at the moment. Who knows!

What is your basis for that fear, bananas, and who are ‘they’?

In analyzing data, you need to look at the specific risks for every particular cohort. So, if women under 55 are dying from the clots, but rarely die from actual COVID, then the lesser risk is not vaccinating those.

@pinkearedcow Haha! Oh I’m embarrassed now, sorry. I’m not normally rude but I thought you started it. I do hate thread policing where people’s motives are questioned but since you asked so politely - I posted a thread about the topic and then a specific one looking for examples of people in my age group who have had it, which isn’t what the first one was asking.

Perhaps a 60 year old has a 2% chance of dying from covid. Has a 0.1% chance of dying from a clot from the vaccine, then the logical course is to vaccinate.

If 40 year olds have a 0.001 chance of dying from covid and a 0.002% chance of dying from a clot from the vaccine, then the logical course is to NOT vaccinate.

All of the above figures were pulled out of my arse.

@Dozer

Right, so in that case an advisory committee to a government has said X.

Yes and the Canadian government have acted on this advice and have suspended the rollout to people under 55, which is them making a public statement.

@Dozer

What is your basis for that fear, bananas, and who are ‘they’?

The government. There is something deeply fishy about the month long pause. Blaming AZ who denied it, then blaming a shipment from India. The propaganda machine has been insane throughout this whole pandemic and I'm starting to read it better. As soon as I started reading mentions of the clotting in foreign media (strangely not reported so quickly in the UK), then the letter to GPs was sent halting the jab before the under 50s could get it - my spider senses are tingling.

For complete clarity I would still have the jab tomorrow and was gutted they have paused the rollout, but the PR machine was quite vocal that Macrons negative comments would affect French uptake, so I'm sure that instead of announcing they were pausing to look more closely at the data (which doesn't mean it is in any way dangerous), some fabricated excuse would be rolled out. And here we are.

Ontario published advice for their care providers 4 days ago about Vipit. Over the past couple of days I've been posting this link on here but seems to get brushed over.

covid19-sciencetable.ca/sciencebrief/vaccine-induced-prothrombotic-immune-thrombocytopenia-vipit-following-astrazeneca-covid-19-vaccination/

I read it and found it useful thank you

It says they still advise that benefits
outweigh risks, that VIPIT is a specific syndrome akin to HIT and there is NO increased risk in those
with a history of clotting disorders and the overall risk could be from 1/125000 to 1 in a million.

I'm OK with a 1 in a million chance of pretty much anything and 1/125000 are odds I'd take too. The odds of having severe COVID are much bigger than that.

They say that so far cases have been in under 55 women but that could be an artefact of those who received most of it. Not clear yet if younger women are at more risk.

Too late for me anyhow as I've had it weeks ago (HCP)

@CovoidOfAllHumanity

Yes I think it did and that none of those people died Also not clear to me if it was this specific HIT issue or something more common like a DVT which I'd happily accept was chance

www.ema.europa.eu/en/news/covid-19-vaccine-astrazeneca-benefits-still-outweigh-risks-despite-possible-link-rare-blood-clots

This is the press release from the conference the EMA did when they decided the benefits of vaccinating outweighed the risks. It talks about the different things that they looked at and the overall risk of clots, including the more common ones is something they looked at.

@FloraFauna27

My DM had a heart attack 12 hours after the AZ. We don’t know if it is connected.

Did you yellow card it?

@ColourHex

I've read that woman with autoimmune disorders are much more likely to have this complication.

As a 30 something with 2 autoimmune conditions I'm not sure I'd be happy to chance it

Where did you read that? That was my concern when I heard it was an autoimmune reaction and as someone with a autoimmune condition, I know I am much more likely to develop another one. I wondered if that applied here.

Well the last 2 reputable links posted don't appear to suggest that

@Tinpotdictator

Aspirin as a prophylactic doesn’t work for venous blood. Arterial blood yes, but not venous blood. If you’ve had the vaccine and are worried, just make sure you keep well hydrated. A lot of these clots are exacerbated / caused by dehydration. And if you’re feeling unwell after the jab you’re probably less likely to drink. So drink up!

By no means an expert but I wouldn't have thought that drinking water will help with the formation of blood clots cause by an autoimmune reaction?

It hadn’t occurred to me that the U.K. has also stopped giving it to most under 50s as of tomorrow. For a reason that nobody seems to know. That really is worrying.

@CovoidOfAllHumanity

I think it's wrong to conflate this very rare condition (HIT) with more normal clotting disorders as the incidence of DVT and PE is lower in people who have been vaccinated in the trials and in the combined U.K. and European data. (That is not surprising because COVID causes blood clots)

As I understand it there were 8 cases of this HIT like condition which is a really weird disorder because having low platelets would usually lead to bleeding and not to clotting.

I can give credence to the idea that COVID vaccines (plausibly any of them) might cause this disorder very very rarely but that doesn't mean there is an increased risk of a blood clot overall. The overall risk is reduced.

I thought that we strange. I had thrombocytopenia in pregnancy and the worry was bleeding not clotting!

The reason was given as supply disruption.

@CovoidOfAllHumanity

Well the last 2 reputable links posted don't appear to suggest that

Was that to me?

@Benjispruce2 but AstraZeneca has denied this:

AstraZeneca said in statement: "Our UK domestic supply chain is not experiencing any disruption and there is no impact on our delivery schedule."

And Moderna is all over the news.

I’m not into conspiracy theories but I’m starting to fear I’ve knowingly been put at risk.

I equally had not thought to think the pause in vaccines is due to blood clotting fears. It would make complete sense. I trust nothing this Government says or does currently..cross I didn't even think this before now (naïve or stupid!!).