Page 17 - RP-MAY-2021

NEWS IN FOCUS 13 CWONCERN OVER COVID VACCINE AFTER EUROPE FINDINGS ith the latest vaccination findings from Europe raising concerns over the “rare but serious side effect involving thrombosis and thrombocytopenia” following injections of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, Australia’s expert vaccine advisory body, the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) has recommended that the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine be the preferred vaccine for adults under 50. According to a joint statement from federal Department of Health Secretary Professor Brendan Murphy and the federal government’s Chief Medical Officer, Professor Paul Kelly, “this recommendation is based on the increasing risk of severe outcomes from Covid-19 in older adults – and hence a higher benefit from vaccination – and a potentially increased risk of thrombosis with thrombocytopenia following AstraZeneca vaccination among those aged under 50”. “ATAGI has further recommended the AstraZeneca vaccine can be used in adults aged under 50 where the benefits clearly outweigh the risk for that individual and the person has made an informed decision based on an understanding of the risks and benefits,” the statement continued. “It has also recommended people who had had the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine without any serious adverse effects can be given the second dose, including adults under 50 years.” At a recent National Cabinet update, Prime Minister Scott Morrison added: “I want to stress again that the advice ... the recommendations that have been received from \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[ATAGI\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] is not a ban on the AstraZeneca vaccine. It’s not a prohibition on the AstraZeneca vaccine. It recommends and notes that the risk of these side effects is remote – they’re very rare ... But it must be acknowledged ... so that Australians can make informed decisions about their vaccination and their healthcare, with their medical professionals.” Adding to the updates at the National Cabinet update, Professor Murphy says he has “absolute confidence that this \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[the AstraZeneca\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] vaccine is highly effective and is highly recommended and safe for people over 50”. “And even for people under 50, it’s a ... highly precautionary preference statement,” he said. “This condition is seen more commonly in younger people and the risk of Covid as you’re over 50 exponentially increases. The ratio of benefit to risk is massively in favour of getting vaccinated. “We need to protect our people, particularly those over 70 and 80 who are the most at risk of Covid. I’m completely confident, as are all the medical experts who’ve come out recently, that people \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[over 50\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] should turn up with the greatest of confidence and take this \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[AstraZeneca\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] vaccine.” Measuring the risks The CSIRO’s Health and Biosecurity Director, Dr Rob Grenfell, said: “As with all medicines, we need to carefully consider the risks of vaccinating alongside the risks of not vaccinating. “Looking at the European and UK figures, it looks like the possible risk of this blood-clot condition is five in one million. For context, the risk of dying from a motor vehicle accident in Australia in 2018 was five in 100,000. The risk of death from Covid in people over 30 years old is one in 900, and for those over 50, it’s one in 90. And ‘long Covid’, where debilitating symptoms last for months after initial infection, is a real concern.” Dr Grenfell adds that, so far, “tens of millions of doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine have been given worldwide, and from that, we’ve seen a substantial decrease in serious illness from Covid-19”. Swinburne University of Technology School of Health Sciences Dean Professor Bruce Thompson, who is President of the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand, says that while “all drugs have risks and side effects ... the recent announcement by ATAGI recommending that the Pfizer vaccine is preferred over the AstraZeneca vaccine in people under the age of 50 years is significant”. “This is a very cautious recommendation based on the relative risk of a significant adverse event compared with the relative benefit of the medication,” he said. “The rare chance of blood clotting will now be added to the current list of side effects \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[of the AstraZeneca vaccine\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\], which include sore arm, headache, lethargy, etc.” According to Associate Professor Hassan Vally, epidemiologist and Senior Lecturer in Public Health at La Trobe University, “it’s really important that the latest developments regarding the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots are put into perspective”. “It’s certainly a significant setback,” he said, “and one we would prefer we didn’t have to deal with. However, we have to be clear that this is an extremely rare side effect and ... the Australian government has taken an extremely cautious approach to protect our health.” Professor Ross Gordon from Queensland University of Technology, a member of the WHO Technical Advisory Board on Behavioural Insights and Sciences for Health, and President of the Australian Association of Social Marketing, warns that with the adjustments to the vaccine rollout, to avoid “increased vaccine hesitancy ... those in charge of the strategy should communicate clearly with the public regarding when they might get the vaccine, where, how, which type (Pfizer or AstraZeneca) and any risks involved”. RETAIL PHARMACY • MAY 2021