Would you have 2nd AZ vaccination if ....

[timetickson]

You'd had a stroke 2 weeks after the 1st jab?

I've name changed for this. So my dh (early 50s) had the AZ vaccine. 2 weeks later he had a stroke... he's totally fine now and on medication. He has a few blood clots in his brain and is waiting for further tests.
He has no other medical issues, fit, healthy weight and basically was not really a candidate for a stroke. At the clinic they asked him if he'd had the vaccine, when and which one. Dh didn't think to ask about the 2nd jab at that time.
Obviously, as he's had the 1st jab, he's pro vaccination, but he feels unsure about having the 2nd. He has an appointment with the GP this week and will ask their advice. Dh knows a neurologist and he said if it was him he wouldn't have the 2nd jab.
I have already had both vaccinations.
What would you do?

Have you reported on the yellow card system?

He needs to ask his medical professionals based on his own personal circumstances and follow their advice.

@Lavender17 - he will already be included in the yellow card statistics, medical professionals use it for reporting for any medication, they don't make a judgement about what has or hasn't been caused or exacerbated by a vaccine. The general public are also asked to add minor side effects for a full picture.

No he should not.

He should talk to one of the specialists at his stroke unit

Has he done so?

(Mildly surprised this has not been thoroughly discussed with the specialists already)

I have had my second AZ jab and I have a lot of health conditions including lupus which can affect blood clotting. I figured in for a penny in for a pound. But - I was lucky after the first jab and had no severe side effects and I’ve heard most serious problems occur after the first.

If I was your dh however I wouldn’t have it. His circumstances are quite extreme and I think it’s just not worth the risk.

Obviously he is getting medical advice about the second jab. I just wondered what other people would do.
He is on blood thinners and statins. It wasn't discussed at the first appointment as it was a day of tests and scans. Tbh he was in shock when the consultant told him it was an actual stroke rather than a TIA due to the presence of the blood clots, so he didn't think to ask.

@YellowPurple really your DH was told to have a second jab after a platelet reaction to the first? I thought in this case it was advised not to. We don’t really know what to do for the best but obviously the consultant is the best person to ask. I thought they can mix jabs already in special cases.

They will want to weigh up the risk of clots with Covid vs vaccine, but it's unlikely to be the same sort of clot. You have to tell them if you are on blood thinners when you go for the vaccine.

I'm very pro vac but would not do it in your DH's situation unless strongly advised to by my doctors.

So he's spoken to GP, who of course had no information from the hospital at all - didn't even know about the stroke! GP will chase hospital up. Dh asked about 2nd jab and GP didn't know what to recommend.
Dh has decided he's not going to have it. The Neurologist dh knows said he wouldn't have it and GP doesn't know, so that doesn't fill him with confidence to have 2nd jab!

@timetickson

So he's spoken to GP, who of course had no information from the hospital at all - didn't even know about the stroke! GP will chase hospital up. Dh asked about 2nd jab and GP didn't know what to recommend. Dh has decided he's not going to have it. The Neurologist dh knows said he wouldn't have it and GP doesn't know, so that doesn't fill him with confidence to have 2nd jab!

Good. I’ve just been reading about people who have died after the vax Doesn’t fill me with confidence

It’s possible they won’t give him the second dose. I have APS (sticky blood making you more prone to clots/strokes/similar)and I’ve heard several accounts this week of people with APS being turned away at the vaccine centre for their second AZ jab and referred back to their GP.

I spoke to my own GP about it and they’ve advised me to find a centre that does alternative vaccines.

Cross post x

I spoke to my own GP about it and they’ve advised me to find a centre that does alternative vaccines.???

There hasn’t been any conclusive trials for mixing vaccines yet.

@pinkmagnolias I know but this is for my case - I’ve not had the first vaccine yet so in a slightly easier position.

The MHRA is still deciding what to do for those that have had the first jab.

No I wouldn't.

Are they investigating any possible link between AZ vaccine and the stroke btw?

The first AZ jab only gives about 60% protection against covid IIRC so he should definitely have a further jab - as PP say, none of the vaccines are yet licenced to be mixed around, though experiments to mix them up are currently being run as it is possible that a having 2 different jabs will be even more effective than 2 of the same.

What I would be doing is listening carefully to the advice of the medical professionals and asking for a dispassionate assessment of the relative risks. The risk to your DH personally for having a 2nd AZ jab vs having a jab of another vaccine will be very different from the typical risk to a general member of the population but no one who hasn't got access to your DHs medical records is qualified to assess the magnitude of those risks.

I understood it was allowed to mix vaccinations in exceptional circumstances. This could be one. Obviously you will take medical advice not just the advice of MNers, some of whom are anti vax.

Boph Vaccines can’t be mixed (at least to date) as clinical trials are ongoing - according to the EMA.

Also I don’t think anybody - anti vaccine or not -would waste their time trying to persuade anyone not to take a second vaccine. The first maybe....

I’m on Rivaroxaban following an unprovoked DVT in 2019 . I also had a femoral clot, a PE and a mild stroke in 2004 after having a baby . I currently have issues caused by suspected Covid last March and had been excited about the possibility of getting the vaccine , however after long chats with my cardiologist and gp I’ve decided to defer being vaccinated at the moment as recent blood tests now show I have a clotting disorder

Just an update as dh had detailed letter from hospital. Consultant states that he does not think these clots can be attributed to the AZ vaccine.
On a lighter note dh is amused that he's being referred to the Young Persons stroke screening clinic.... he's in his early 50s!