No reason for widespread concern over vaccines and rare clots, say MRC and Sisonke researchers sowetanlive.co.za - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from sowetanlive.co.za Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Thursday 15 April 2021 - 8:45am
Vaccinologist Shabir Madhi commented on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine pause. Courtesy of #DStv403
JOHANNESBURG - Professor of Vaccinology at the University of the Witwatersrand Shabir Madhi said the benefits of using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine far outweigh the risks.
He says while pausing the clinical trial is justified, the vaccine should be rolled out.
The trial was halted while the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority examines data on a possible link between the jab and a rare blood clot disorder. The decision by the government to pause the J&J vaccine needs to be contextualised in that the vaccine is used as a clinical trial. In this clinical trial, the participants need to always to informed of any risks.
Opinion: Rolling out the vaccine was supposed to be the beginning of the end of the pandemic, but new obstacles keep emerging and we should anticipate that more will come.
If the current rate of vaccination continues, it will take most of us 16 years, give or take, to get a jab, according to Media Hack, the vaccine calculator.
But South Africa’s vaccine task team reckons that the target of 67% immunisation can be achieved by December as stock scales up from April 21.
A rare thrombosis noted in six women vaccinated with Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in the US has caused a seven- to 10-day pause there and in Europe; SA has stopped its trial too. The J&J vaccine had been given to 6.7 million people in the US before the clotting was reported.
J&J vaccine: No blood clots have been reported in Africa - WHO news24.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from news24.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.