– Yusra Firdaus
1 May 2024: Thrombosis Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) – a blood clot disorder – is a rare side effect of AstraZeneca’s Covid vaccine, and the risks far outweigh the benefits of the jab, doctors said today.
The British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical company has acknowledged for the first time in UK court documents that its Covid vaccine can cause a rare blood clot risk, according to the Telegraph.
The Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, sold as Covishield in India and Vaxzevria in Europe is a viral vector vaccine developed using the modified chimpanzee adenovirus ChAdOx1.
Covishield, which was produced and distributed in India in collaboration with the Serum Institute of India (SII), was given to over 90% of the nation’s population.
One of the uncommon but extremely dangerous side effects of vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenic purpura (VITTP) is thrombotic thrombocytopenic syndrome (TTS). According to infectious disease specialist Dr. Ishwar Gilada, the incidence has been as low as one in 50,000 (0.002 percent), but in a large population, the number becomes significant.
“An aberrant immune response is the cause of TTS, an extremely uncommon illness. It has multiple causes, but vaccinations against adenovirus vectors have also been connected to it; the WHO released a report on the subject on May 27, 2021”.
Approximately 51 cases have been filed in the UK High Court against the pharmaceutical giant over claims that its COVID-19 vaccine caused death and serious injury. The victims and their grieving relatives have sought damages, estimated to be worth up to 100 million pounds. Dr. Rajeev Jayadevan, co-chairman of the Indian Medical Association’s National Covid-19 Task Force, told news agency IANS.
The report stated that despite AstraZeneca’s denial of the allegations, “it has accepted, in a legal document submitted to the High Court in February that its Covid vaccine ‘can, in very rare cases, cause TTS’“.
People with TTS experience decreased blood platelet counts and blood clots.
TTS and the Covid vaccination from AstraZeneca? Nearly 90% of those in India who received the COVID-19 vaccine also received the AstraZeneca vaccine, known as Covishield in that country. It is derived from an adenovirus, a harmless cold virus seen in chimpanzees.
“This virus functions on a spike protein once it has been genetically altered or designed to resemble the SARS-CoV-2, the causative organism for COVID-19. Therefore, the genetic sequence of the S spike protein is integrated into the vaccine,” stated Dr. Ishwar, Secretary General of the People’s Health Organization-India, Mumbai.
He explained the possible TTS risk mechanism by stating that the vaccination is injected into the deltoid muscle in the arm. However, occasionally, it penetrates the bloodstream as well as the muscles. The doctor explained that once the vaccine’s adenovirus reaches the bloodstream, it behaves like a magnet and has a particular affinity for a blood protein known as platelet factor 4 (PF4).
Although the body ordinarily employs PF4 to aid in blood coagulation, occasionally it misidentifies the protein as a foreign intruder or body and releases antibodies to combat it. This phenomenon is known as mistaken identity.
According to theory, these antibodies subsequently interact and group with PF4, creating the blood clots that are closely associated with the vaccination. Such blood clots in the heart and brain can have serious consequences, the physician stated.
Are people who have taken the Covishield vaccine should worry?
Dr. Ishwar said, “No, we don’t need to because it has happened to very few people.”
He continued, “It can be challenging to determine which consequences are brought on by the vaccine, long-term COVID, or Covid itself. For both the legal community and the scientific community, it is still up for debate and indistinguishability.”
Furthermore, Dr. Rajeev stated, “People who are vaccinated have an overall lower risk of death from Covid as well as complications such as post-Covid heart attacks and strokes afterward.”
“Vaccines have very few major adverse effects, but overall, the benefits outweigh the dangers. Vaccinations against COVID-19 have saved hundreds of thousands of lives. For instance, a disproportionate fear of vaccination has prevented 232,000–318,000 persons in the US from receiving the Covid vaccine, resulting in their deaths,” he continued.
