Head of IWT: There is no scientific basis to stop vaccination with AstraZeneca entirely

You don’t see any scientific basis

According to the head of IWT, Gytis Andrulionis, the service does not intend to propose to the Ministry of Health to stop the entire AstraZeneca vaccine.

“I would like to remind you that it was recommended to stop a series that raised questions in Austria and is still valid today. We will also make a proposal to resume vaccination if we believe there is reason to do so.

But for the AstraZeneca vaccine as a whole, we do not think any additional action is necessary. There is no scientific basis to stop vaccination with AstraZeneca entirely. The European Medicines Agency has not carried out evaluations and does not link thromboembolic events with the vaccine, ”said Mr Andrulionis.

He said there were no more cases of thromboembolism than usual in the population.

“There is a lot of that information, it flows a lot from the states, we appreciate it all day. But I want to highlight some aspects.

No country has reported quality issues with the specific AtraZeneca series, leading to questions in Austria. There were no such reports.

No country has made the decision to withdraw the vaccine from the market. Third, there is no reason to suspend the supply market to stop. Just today, the Austrians reported that, like Lithuania, they have discontinued the use of a particular series, but in all other series vaccination is proceeding at full speed. The Austrians themselves have not initiated any changes, “said G. Andrulionis.

“It was a sign of anxiety”

Journalists also asked at a press conference from the head of IWT why the service is not currently proposing to stop vaccination with AstraZeneca when several countries are doing so, although last week, when Austria reported possible serious side effects after vaccination, vaccination with AstraZeneca alone was discontinued. in Lithuania. vaccine.

“This was seen as a sign of anxiety, as two relatively young people without critical health problems were vaccinated in a hospital and a series of vaccinations began to have severe reactions and one case ended in death.

At that time, the Austrians themselves made that decision, splitting the shipments that had arrived in the country, and at that time it was the utmost precaution. We will also propose a decision on the suspended dose to the Ministry in the near future. The European Medicines Agency and the manufacturer expressed their position on safety only later, “said G. Andrulionis.

He vaccinated more than 5 million. people

The AstraZeneca vaccine is currently administered to more than 5 million people worldwide. According to Rugilė Pilvinienė, Senior Advisor to the IUD Pharmacovigilance and Poisoning Information Unit, there are currently only about 30 adverse reactions related to thromboembolism.

“If the vaccine had contributed to this phenomenon, there would have been many more such cases,” said R. Pilvinienė.

Therefore, it is likely that these cases of thromboembolism would have occurred without vaccination; as before, people have experienced various diseases without vaccination.

“It is not meaningful and scientifically correct to look at everything through the prism of COVID-19 disease and vaccination. We need to look seriously at the situation and understand that not everything is caused by COVID-19 disease and vaccination. And it is possible that certain post-vaccine phenomena and events are not always related to the effects caused by the vaccine, ”said R. Pilvinienė.

Denmark, Norway and Iceland discontinued vaccination

Currently, Denmark, Norway and Iceland have temporarily suspended stocks of AstraZeneca vaccines due to suspected adverse reactions to the vaccine, as there is no indication that the vaccine may have caused these conditions, which are not listed as such.

The EEA Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC) is evaluating the benefits of the vaccine in the overall immunization process and recommends that the vaccine be continued. Concomitant thromboembolic events are being investigated; The PRAC is reviewing all reported cases of thromboembolic events and other conditions associated with blood clots, as well as other conditions reported after vaccination with AstraZeneca.

At present, vaccination with a single batch of ABV5300 has been suspended in Lithuania pending an investigation to rule out the lowest possible assumptions regarding the safety of this particular batch of vaccine.

During large-scale vaccination not only in our country, but also around the world, Lithuania constantly monitors and analyzes all information on suspected adverse reactions after COVID-19 vaccine and takes appropriate measures.