General News of Wednesday, 17 March 2021

Source: angelonline.com.gh

FDA monitoring the side effects of coronavirus vaccines

FDA has assured Ghanaians of the safety of the vaccine FDA has assured Ghanaians of the safety of the vaccine

The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has assured that, it is working to protect the public against dire adverse events likely to be caused by the Covid-19 vaccines being used in the country.

According to the authority in a statement issued on Covid-19 Vaccine Safety, a committee of experts—Joint Covid-19 Vaccine Safety Review Committee (JCVSRC)—set up on February 26, 2021 to monitor the adverse events has been actively working since the vaccination started.

It indicated that at the committee’s last sitting—March 12, 2021—the following expected adverse events were reported to be common among persons who have taken the jab: Headaches, fever, chills, body pains, pain at injection site, weakness, nausea and dizziness.

However, these effects being reported by the JCVSRC “in most cases resolved within a day or two,” the FDA noted.

The FDA also noted that the JCVSRC corroborated findings that suggest that events of blood clots reported in countries that have undertaken the AstraZaneca vaccination exercise were not vaccine related.

“The JCVSRC discussed reports of some blood clots in some countries in Europe following the vaccination with the AstraZaneca Covid-19 vaccine, leading to the suspension of the vaccination for further investigation.”

“It concluded that there is currently no casual link between the event and the vaccine, a position that was subsequently upheld by the European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organization,” the authority stated.

The authority therefore assures the public that no blood clot event linked to the vaccination exercise has been reported among those who have taken their jab in the country.