New Delhi: Many of you may be wondering whether there will be any blood clot or not post taking the COVID jab. Well, last month, the union health ministry released advisories that spelled out the symptoms of blood clot to watch out for after taking vaccination against COVID19. The ministry said that the number of blood clot cases in people who received AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine, called Covishield, in India was “minuscule”. Scroll down for more details.
The central government has now fixed rate of COVID vaccines in private hospitals.
Currently, Covishield is the most widely used in the country. It is manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute (SII).
The health ministry, citing a report by the National AEFI Committee, said in a statement that, “AEFI (Adverse Event Following Immunisation) data in India showed that there is a very miniscule but definitive risk of thromboembolic events.”
For the uninitiated, thromboembolic events refer to the formation of a clot in a blood vessel that might also break loose and be carried by the bloodstream to plug another vessel.
Things to note
The ministry separately released advisories to healthcare workers and vaccine beneficiaries to encourage people to be aware of suspected thromboembolic symptoms. Please note that these symptoms, according to the advisory, occur within 20 days of taking a shot (particularly Covishield) and asked the beneficiaries to report to the health facility where vaccine was administered.
According to the health ministry’s advisory, the list of symptoms of blood clot to watch out for are:
- breathlessness;
- pain in chest;
- pain in limbs/pain on pressing limbs or swelling in limbs (arm or calf);
- multiple, pinhead size red spots or bruising of skin in an area beyond the injection site;
- persistent abdominal pain with or without vomiting;
- seizures in the absence of previous history of seizures with or without vomiting;
- severe and persistent headache with or without vomiting (in the absence of previous history of migraine or chronic headache);
- weakness/paralysis of limbs or any particular side or part of the body (including face);
- persistent vomiting without any obvious reason;
- blurred vision or pain in eyes or having double vision;
- change in mental status or having confusion or depressed level of consciousness;
- any other symptom or health condition which is of concern to the recipient or the family.
HT reported that according to the AEFI Committee, it has completed an in-depth case review of 498 serious and severe events, of which 26 cases have been reported to be potential thromboembolic (formation of a clot in a blood vessel that might also break loose and carried by the bloodstream to plug another vessel) events – following the administration of Covishield vaccine – with a reporting rate of 0.61 cases per million doses.
Please call your doctor immediately if you experience any of the above symptoms. A healthcare professional will be able to look at your symptoms and medical history and let you know what steps to be taken.