Blood Clots a Very Rare Side Effect of AstraZeneca Vaccine: EMA

The European Medicines Agency emphasizes that the benefits of the jab in protecting against COVID-19 still far outweigh the risks.

Written byCatherine Offord
| 2 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

ABOVE: © ISTOCK.COM, JETCITYIMAGE

The European Medicines Agency has concluded that certain unusual types of blood clots are a very rare side effect of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, according to a statement the agency posted yesterday (April 7). These clots, which are associated with low blood platelet counts, have been reported in connection with a handful of deaths among the more than 34 million people who have received the vaccine in Europe and the UK, prompting several countries to alter their immunization rollouts in recent weeks.

Sabine Straus, chair of the committee that produced the EMA report, said at a press conference yesterday that the rate of cases appeared to be about 1 in 100,000 vaccinated people. According to the statement, the agency based its analysis on nearly 90 cases of blood clots, 18 of which were fatal. “The reported combination of blood clots and low blood platelets is very ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Related Topics

Meet the Author

  • After undergraduate research with spiders at the University of Oxford and graduate research with ants at Princeton University, Catherine left arthropods and academia to become a science journalist. She has worked in various guises at The Scientist since 2016. As Senior Editor, she wrote articles for the online and print publications, and edited the magazine’s Notebook, Careers, and Bio Business sections. She reports on subjects ranging from cellular and molecular biology to research misconduct and science policy. Find more of her work at her website.

    View Full Profile
Share
February 2026

A Stubborn Gene, a Failed Experiment, and a New Path

When experiments refuse to cooperate, you try again and again. For Rafael Najmanovich, the setbacks ultimately pushed him in a new direction.

View this Issue
Human-Relevant In Vitro Models Enable Predictive Drug Discovery

Advancing Drug Discovery with Complex Human In Vitro Models

Stemcell Technologies
Redefining Immunology Through Advanced Technologies

Redefining Immunology Through Advanced Technologies

Ensuring Regulatory Compliance in AAV Manufacturing with Analytical Ultracentrifugation

Ensuring Regulatory Compliance in AAV Manufacturing with Analytical Ultracentrifugation

Beckman Coulter Logo
Conceptual multicolored vector image of cancer research, depicting various biomedical approaches to cancer therapy

Maximizing Cancer Research Model Systems

bioxcell

Products

Sino Biological Logo

Sino Biological Pioneers Life Sciences Innovation with High-Quality Bioreagents on Inside Business Today with Bill and Guiliana Rancic

Sino Biological Logo

Sino Biological Expands Research Reagent Portfolio to Support Global Nipah Virus Vaccine and Diagnostic Development

Beckman Coulter

Beckman Coulter Life Sciences Partners with Automata to Accelerate AI-Ready Laboratory Automation

Refeyn logo

Refeyn named in the Sunday Times 100 Tech list of the UK’s fastest-growing technology companies