Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine is cleared in Europe but there has been little delivery yet. (drawing) – JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP
The European Medicines Agency said on Friday it had launched a study into possible links between Johnson & Johnson’s anti-Covid vaccine and blood clots after four cases were reported, including one fatal. The EMA indicated that its committee for safety had “launched a study” intended “to assess information on thromboembolic incidents” concerning people who have received the vaccine. The European Union has authorized this vaccine but has not started using it.
“It was reported, after vaccination with the Covid-19 Janssen vaccine, four severe cases of unusual clots associated with low platelet levels,” said the EMA, citing the name of the European subsidiary of the American giant. “One case occurred during a clinical trial and three occurred during vaccination in the United States. One of them was fatal, ”the EMA added.
The European regulator has approved the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and its implementation in European Union countries is due to start in April. The announcement comes as the Amsterdam-based organization has studied cases of blood clots in people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine and admitted that they were indeed side effects. Both vaccines use an adenovirus as a vector.