AstraZeneca in Italy and debate on doses to people under 60, but also the EMA which evaluates cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome reported after the administration of the vaccine. These are the latest news on the product today. Read also On the subject of doses also to the under 60s in Italy, the last to speak is the general director of Prevention of the Ministry of Health, Gianni Rezza, during the press conference on the analysis of the data of the regional monitoring of the control room Iss- Ministry of Health: “Viral vector vaccines – he explained – are used from 18 years upwards, so there is no contraindication to the use of these vaccines under a certain age. The latest ministerial circular provides that these vaccines “, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson,” are preferentially used above the age of 60. This is not to say that they cannot be used below “this age threshold. “From the point of view of the profile of what are the very low risks of rare thromboembolic events, which occurred mainly in younger female people, and considering both the incidence of infection and mortality due to Covid, very high especially after a certain age, this was the reason why it was said to preferentially use them over the age of 60 “, explained the expert, reiterating that this” does not mean that they cannot be used under this age. We have seen how the British, who used 50% AstraZeneca and the other 50% Pfizer, have achieved truly exceptional results in terms of reducing mortality and incidence “for a country that” traveled on thousands of deaths at day”. Therefore, “there is no contraindication” to the use of AstraZeneca and J&J vaccines under 60, Rezza summarized, “but it is clear that these tend to be used more above a certain age”. And for example “Germany, however, has already operated a certain liberalization, in the sense that the German health minister has announced that AstraZeneca, but we can also speak of J&J, can be used at any age. So even under 60”. The Dg highlighted that “the debate is open, there is an ongoing discussion and it will take into account the benefits that a wide use of all available vaccines can have”. AstraZeneca’s Coronavirus vaccine “is recommended above 60 years, but it is likely that it will also be used under 60. Those who have taken the first dose can easily take the second, even if they are under 60 “, undersecretary of health Pierpaolo Sileri had already underlined this morning to the microphones of the broadcast ‘L’Italia he woke up, on Radio Cusano Campus.
Meanwhile, the EMA evaluates cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome (Gbs) reported after the administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The drug, recommended in Italy for the over 60s and already in the spotlight for thrombosis cases reported after the first dose, is still monitored by the Prac Pharmacovigilance Committee of the European Medicines Agency. This was reported by the EMA, in the report in which it takes stock of the last meeting of the Prac. Gbs, recalls the EU regulatory body, is a disorder of the immune system that causes inflammation of the nerves and can cause pain, numbness, muscle weakness and difficulty in walking. The experts of the committee, explains the EMA, are analyzing “the data. provided by the marketing authorization holder “, Aic, of the Anglo-Swedish vaccine” on cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome reported following vaccination. GBS was identified during the Aic trial as a possible adverse event which requires specific monitoring activities “, specifies the agency. “The Prac – he underlines – has asked the holder of the marketing authorization to provide further detailed data, including an analysis of all reported cases, as part of the next safety report”. The committee will continue its review and provide further communications as new information becomes available.And while the debate on the product is ongoing, an alternative to the product developed by the University of Oxford will be offered in the UK for people with less 40 years, where available. The decision follows the recommendations of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization on the risks of thrombosis, specifying that this must not slow down the vaccination campaign. People between the ages of 30 and 39 will therefore be offered the option in the UK to vaccinate with Pfizer / BioNTech or Nih / Moderna as an alternative to AstraZeneca.
