Can AstraZeneca be tweaked so that it doesn't lead to blood clots?
Vaxx Populi: Researchers are getting faster at recognizing, diagnosing and treating VITT, and there is hope that they're zeroing in on what causes it
June 3, 2021
A man arrives at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Montreal, on Tuesday, June 1, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson
As Ontario, Nova Scotia and other provinces distribute second doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to residents, there is good news about the troubled COVID-19 vaccine. Not only are doctors and researchers around the world getting faster at recognizing, diagnosing and treating the rare blood clotting syndrome that can occur after a shot of the vaccine, but there is now hope that scientists are zeroing in on what causes vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT). The syndrome, which can occur between four and 28 days after vaccination, features both blood clots and low platelet counts. And it’s those tiny blood cells, which work by forming blood clots to stop bleeding, that are key to identifying VITT in patients.