AstraZeneca Initiates Covid-19 Vaccine Withdrawal Worldwide

Days after AstraZeneca accepted in court that it's COVID-19 vaccine has some adverse effects, the British pharmaceutical company has started the global withdrawal. Using the formula of developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, the Serum Institute of India (SII) produced the vaccine in India naming it as the Covishield. According to the reports, the company has initiated to revoke the marketing authorisations for the vaccine Vaxzevria across Europe citing that "updated vaccines" options now available.

"As multiple, variant COVID-19 vaccines have since been developed there is a surplus of available updated vaccines," the Telegraph quoted the company. The company noted a decline in demand for Vaxzevria, after which, it stopped manufacturing or suppling of the vaccine.

As per media reports, the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company has acknowledged in court documents that its vaccine can lead to side effects. The document recognizes that in extremely rare instances, the vaccine may result in a condition known as TTS (Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome). This serious condition involves the formation of blood clots along with a decrease in platelet levels. These blood clots can manifest in various parts of the body, including the brain and abdomen.

"It is admitted that the AZ vaccine can, in very rare cases, cause TTS. The causal mechanism is not known...Further, TTS can also occur in the absence of the AZ vaccine (or any vaccine). Causation in any individual case will be a matter for expert evidence," AstraZeneca said.

The company acknowledged the possibility of a rare side effect linked to its COVID-19 vaccine in its statement, which hit the panic button worldwide, as the recent information was contradicting to company's 2023 statement related to Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS).