The position of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is clear: vaccines for people over 16 years of age and for both sexes despite the inclusion of the However, some countries of the European Union suspended their administration. The key to this decision is in the balance of risk and benefit with respect to the pandemic situation.
Denmark has suspended vaccination with AstraZeneca and Janssen
Spain is one of those countries that has established age limits in the administration of In addition, it is considering giving among all the individuals who stayed with a first injection of the Oxford serum before the age norm was established.
Spain’s position is the one followed by other European countries such as Germany or France. However, Denmark is the most outspoken regarding the use of AstraZeneca and Janssen drugs. Thus, it first made the decision to suspend vaccination with the Oxford serum indefinitely and this week it has done the same with the single-dose vaccine.
Why Denmark has suspended vaccination with AstraZeneca and Janssen
The suspension with AstraZeneca in Denmark came in mid-April after the EMA found a relationship between the vaccine and the cases of thrombosis that had arisen. At that time, Denmark was able to make that decision because a large part of its older and at-risk population was already immunized and because it had the pandemic under relative control, with a cumulative incidence of about 120 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Similarly, the Danish health authorities decided on Monday to withdraw the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson from its immunization program, due to the drug’s link to thrombotic events after its administration. “You cannot compensate for the risk of possible side effects such as serious blood clots in those vaccinated,” said the deputy director of the Danish National Board of Health, Helene Probst, in a statement, collected by the Politiken newspaper.
The decision that Denmark is taking is explained by the risk and benefit balance regarding the situation of the pandemic at a given moment. And that is in tune with the position of the United Kingdom, which does not administer AstraZeneca in those under 30 years of age, even considering the possibility of raising that limit to 40 years of age. .
The balance between risk and benefit according to the pandemic situation
The reason for the decision made by the United Kingdom and Denmark is established, in part, by a work carried out by the University of Cambridge, which produced a series of infographics where it relates the risk of contracting Covid-19 in the next four months (and ending admitted to an ICU) with the risk of suffering a thrombus with the AstraZeneca vaccine. And the conclusions are clear: although the incidence is low, getting vaccinated is better.
illustration of the possible harms and benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine with a low incidence
However, this constant is not so clear among the population group between 20 and 29 years of age, especially when the accumulated incidence is not high. Thus, the graph made in a low-incidence scenario shows that the benefits of a person between 20 and 29 years of age being vaccinated with AstraZeneca are less than the risks of having a possible thromboembolic event.
Thus, this is the reason that has led the United Kingdom to only suspend vaccination with AstraZeneca to those under 30 years of age. It should be remembered that although it is intended to vaccinate the entire population to achieve group immunity and, if possible, eradicate the virus. The truth is that deaths and hospitalizations due to Covid-19 have mostly been carried out by those over 65 years of age.
Denmark decides that the vaccination of AstraZeneca and Janssen is voluntary
The state and control of the pandemic has been key in the decision not to administer Janssen or AstraZeneca in young people. Thus, the director of the General Directorate of Health, Søren Brostrøm, said regarding the suspension of AstraZeneca that it is not an irremovable decision. Thus, Denmark does not deny being able to recover the vaccine in the future if necessary, in the event that the epidemiological situation worsens significantly and health is under pressure.
Thus, given the availability of doses from AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson in the European country, the Danish Parliament has agreed that citizens can choose whether to receive either of them, even if they are no longer included in the vaccination plan. The Danish authorities expect this optional and voluntary model to start in May.
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