The Philippines will now resume administering AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines to Filipinos below 60 year old, the Department of Health confirmed on Friday.
The news came following the announcement of arrival of 2 million doses of AstraZeneca jabs from COVAX facility.
In a statement, DOH said no reports of blood clots or adverse events were reported among individuals vaccinated with AstraZeneca shots in the country.
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“To date, no local VITT (vaccine-induced thrombosis and thrombocytopenia) events have been confirmed,” the statement read.
“It was concluded that there are currently no known risk factors for VITT and that the benefits of receiving the vaccine against COVID-19 still outweighs the risk,” it furthered.
DOH halted the use of the vaccine developed by the European pharmaceutical firm following a report from European Medicines Agency linking the vaccine from the rare blood clots.
VITT is a rare condition that can occur on 4 to 29 days after getting administered with the AstraZeneca shot.
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Meanwhile, DOH allayed concerns on adverse events that may occur after receiving COVID-19 vaccines.
“All vaccination sites should have a strengthened post-vaccination surveillance to spot possible adverse events following immunization,” the agency stressed.
“All health care workers in vaccination sites will be trained to detect and manage possible symptoms of VITT and refer them accordingly to the appropriate health facility for definitive work-up and management,” it furthered. (RA)
