AstraZeneca, following global outrage over the side effects of the vaccine, said on Tuesday that the benefits of the vaccine “far outweigh” the risks of “extremely rare” potential side effects.
AstraZeneca Covishield COVID Vaccine: AstraZeneca, the British pharma company on Tuesday acknowledged that its Covishield COVID vaccine comes with potentially serious side effects. The Covishield vaccine which had largely been administered in India, may lead to conditions leading to blood clots, low platelet count, etc.
Following the global outrage over the side effects of the vaccine, AstraZeneca said on Tuesday that the benefits of the vaccine “far outweigh” the risks of “extremely rare” potential side effects.
AstraZeneca, the British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company came out with its response to news agency IANS as the furore over the company admitting in a UK court documents accepted that its COVID-19 vaccine, developed in partnership with Oxford University, can raise the risk of a rare and serious blood clot.
“From the body of evidence in clinical trials and real-world data, the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine has continuously been shown to have an acceptable safety profile,” the statement said.
“Regulators around the world consistently state that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of extremely rare potential side effects,” it added.
The Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, sold as Covishield in India and Vaxzevria in Europe is a viral vector vaccine developed using the modified chimpanzee adenovirus ChAdOx1.
In a legal document submitted to the UK High Court, in February, “AstraZeneca accepted that its Covid vaccine ‘can, in very rare cases, cause TTS’”, the Telegraph reported.
Thrombosis Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) is a disorder that causes people to have blood clots and a low blood platelet count.
A total of 51 cases have been lodged in the UK High Court against the pharmaceutical giant over claims that its Covid vaccine caused death and serious injury. The victims and grieving relatives have sought damages, estimated to be worth up to 100 million pounds, the report said.
The company also expressed sympathy with the people who suffered loss of lives or health due to its vaccine, and asserted that “patient safety is our highest priority”.
“Our sympathy goes out to anyone who has lost loved ones or reported health problems,” AstraZeneca said.
“Patient safety is our highest priority and regulatory authorities have clear and stringent standards to ensure the safe use of all medicines, including vaccines,” the company added.
Covishield was produced by AstraZeneca, marketed under the brand name Covishield, and manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune.
(With IANS inputs)