AstraZeneca announced today that it has started a worldwide recall of its Covid-19 vaccine. The Guardian reports it. The pharmaceutical company also added that it will proceed with the withdrawal of the marketing authorizations for Vaxzevria in Europe.
The official statement comes after the admission in court in London – in the lawsuit brought by relatives of British citizens who died from blood clots that appear linked to the anti-Covid vaccine – of the side effects of the serum: «It can cause a very rare side effect, with complications potentially fatal”, the lawyers admitted in the courtroom at the end of April. The decision follows the company’s official note in March on the halt to the marketing of the vaccine in the European Union. Yesterday the European Medicines Agency issued a warning that the vaccine is no longer authorized for use.
The British newspaper recalls that, although the vaccine was overall safe and effective, it carried the risk of a rare but serious side effect, known as thrombosis with thrombocytopenia or TTS. The rare syndrome occurred in approximately two to three people out of 100,000 vaccinated with Vaxzevria.
The pharmaceutical company – which claims: “Our efforts have been recognized by governments around the world and are widely considered to be a fundamental component to putting an end to the global pandemic” – justified the withdrawal with the lack of demand and the surplus of vaccines currently available on the market: «As numerous updated vaccines have been developed for Covid-19 variants, there is now a surplus of available sera. This has caused a decrease in demand for Vaxzervria, which is no longer produced or supplied,” AstraZeneca explained.
