Researchers find cause of rare blood clots linked to AstraZeneca vaccine

A team of doctors from Germany and Austria say they have found the cause of rare blood clots linked to AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine, according to Deutsche Welle.

News Deskbdnews24.com
Published : 19 March 2021, 09:16 PM
Updated : 19 March 2021, 09:16 PM

Besides the mechanism behind the rare form of thrombosis, the researchers say, they have also developed a diagnostic tool and a suggested therapy to "clear it up immediately", the international broadcaster of Germany reported on Friday.

The revelation came as countries in Europe resumed giving the doses, developed by the British-Swedish drug company and the UK’s University of Oxford, after days of suspension over fears about the blood clots that caused deaths in some cases.

Deutsche Welle reported the findings by the researchers at the Greifswald teaching hospital in northern Germany citing public broadcaster Norddeutscher Rundfunk.

The investigation showed how the vaccine caused rare thrombosis in the brain in a small number of patients, according to the report.

“The discovery means that targeted treatment can be offered to those who suffer similar clotting, using a very common medication,” it said.

The success was a result of cooperation between the Greifswald hospital, state health regulator the Paul Ehrlich Institute, as well as doctors in Austria.

The researchers emphasised that treatment would only be possible in patients where blood clots appear, rather than as a preventative treatment.

Symptoms like continuous headache, dizziness or impaired vision lasting more than three days after vaccination need further medical check-ups, the report said, citing a statement from the German Research Association for Thrombosis and Hemostasis.

The Greifswald findings have not yet been published in a scientific journal and therefore have not been reviewed by independent experts. The Paul-Ehrlich-Institute in Germany is now looking into the scientists' work.