The post European Medicines Agency lists neurological disorder as a “very rare” side effect of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>A causal relationship was “considered at least a reasonable possibility”, the EMA said in an update Wednesday after a total of 833 cases of the syndrome had been reported worldwide by July 31, from about 592 million doses of the AstraZeneca “Vaxzevria” shot administered.
“GBS should therefore be added to the product information as a side effect of Vaxzevria,” the Amsterdam-based agency said.
Guillain-Barre Syndrome was a “very rare” side effect, occurring in under one in 10,000 people, it added.
The disorder is a nerve inflammation that may cause temporary paralysis and difficulty breathing.
In the United States, the very rare syndrome affects an estimated 3,000 to 6,000 people each year and most go on to recover.
The EMA recommended that a warning be added to information on the vaccine that tells people to seek medical attention if they develop weakness and paralysis in the extremities that can progress to the chest and face.
The European drug regulator had in July listed Guillain-Barre syndrome as a “very rare” side effect of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which uses the same adenovirus technology as the AstraZeneca jab.
The US Food and Drug Administration also warned in July of an “increased risk” of developing the neurological syndrome with Johnson & Johnson’s dose.
Both regulators stressed that the vaccine’s benefits outweighed the potential risks.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Edge Media staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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]]>The post AstraZeneca Says Its Antibody Cocktail Prevents Covid In High-Risk Groups appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Results from Astra’s study found no one in the trial who received the cocktail contracted severe Covid-19 or died in relation to the disease, the company said in a statement Friday. The trial of 5,197 participants, which started in November, was looking at whether the drug could prevent infection in at-risk groups and took place in the U.S., U.K., Belgium, France and Spain.
The outcome will be a big relief for Astra after another study testing whether the cocktail could prevent symptomatic Covid-19 in people explicitly exposed to the virus failed in June. The findings may also salvage a deal with the U.S. to purchase the drug. The U.S. had ordered as many as 700,000 doses for delivery in 2021, the value of which was partly contingent on the failed trial.
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]]>The post South Africa indicates that it may resume using AstraZeneca vaccine appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Newly appointed South African health minister Joe Phaahla told a press briefing the government was planning to start using other vaccines, including Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccine.
“It was approved … also that the AstraZeneca vaccine, which has now been shown to be effective against the Delta variant, that we should also look at bringing it back into use,” Phaahla said.
Earlier this year, the South African government halted the use of Covishield, a version of AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII), after a study showed the vaccine provided minimal protection against mild to moderate illness caused by the Beta variant. South Africa sold the Covishied doses it had purchased from SII to African Union.
The South African health minister’s remark suggests the country may consider using the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine again, given its high level of effectiveness against the Delta variant which is swiftly becoming the dominant strain across the world. A recent study of real-world data from Canada showed one dose of AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria helped reduce hospitalisations or deaths by 87%.
As Johnson & Johnson has applied for emergency use approval in India for its single-shot Covid-19 vaccine, its efficacy against variants announced by South Africa is encouraging. Glenda Gray, the joint lead investigator of Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine trial in South Africa, said that the single-shot vaccine offers protection against severe disease and death.
Gray told a media briefing that J&J shot, which is being used in the national vaccine programme alongside Pfizer’s, offered 67% efficacy against infection when the Beta variant dominates and about 71% when the Delta variant dominates.
Consistently after receiving the vaccine, there was very little death occurring in the vaccinated group as compared to the control group and showing a remarkable up to 96.2% protection against death,” Gray said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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]]>The post France allows visitors with Indian-made AstraZeneca vaccine. appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The move to accept visitors vaccinated with AstraZeneca’s vaccine made by India’s Serum Institute came after a global outcry over the fact that the European Union’s Covid-19 certificate only recognises AstraZeneca vaccines manufactured in Europe.
At the same time, France is tightening border checks to control the spread of the delta variant and protect hospitals, according to a statement from the Prime Minister on saturday.
France still doest recognise vaccinations by Chinese or Russian vaccines, only those authorised by the EU drug regulator.
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]]>The post Thailand’s new immunisation strategy against Coronavirus appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The plan, if implemented, would be the first publicly announced mix and match of a Chinese vaccine and a Western-developed shot.
The move aims to increase protection against highly transmissible variants, Anutin Charnvirakul told reporters.
This is to improve protection against the Delta variant and build high level of immunity against the disease,” Health Minister Anutin said, referring to the variant first detected in Indonesia.
Thailand and neighbours like Indonesia have reported breakthrough infections among medical and frontline workers inoculated with Sinovac’s inactivated virus vaccine.
The majority of Thailand’s medical and frontline workers were given Sinovac’s shots after February with the viral vector vaccine from AstraZeneca AZN.L arriving in June.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Edge Media staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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]]>The post US pledges 2cr more vaccines to the world appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>He also made sure to mention that they will not be using the vaccines to secure favors from other countries. This announcement was welcomed by US-law makers and Indian-American community leaders.
Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi also talked regarding the same matter. He said that the outbreaks in India and many other countries is heartbreaking. He said that those who have been vaccinated also pose a threat. “we need to further expand our support to the nations battling these outbreaks in order to save millions of lives in danger today”‘ he added
In April, Biden had promised 2crore doses of AstraZeneca and 6 more now. It takes the total to 8Crore.
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