Consultant virologist tells LBC he's not worried about the AstraZeneca jab
17 March 2021, 08:43
Consultant virologist Dr Chris Smith explains blood clots and the AZ jab
A consultant virologist has told LBC he's not worried about the AstraZeneca jab but warned that deferral of vaccinations could lead to loss of life.
Consultant Virologist Dr Chris Smith told LBC he wasn't worried about the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab.
"I'm not worried because. I don't think there's any kind of problem."
The medical expert told LBC the reaction has been triggered by an apparent association between people taking the vaccine and blood clots.
He explained in the UK about one person per thousand suffers with a blood clot every year.
"There are 17 million people, most of them in the UK, but a significant proportion of them in European countries, that have had the vaccine," Dr Smith explained.
He told Nick that the chances of having a blood clot after being jabbed with the AstraZeneca vaccine seemed to be statically lower than the average.
He said the other "crucial point" was that by EU countries deferring their vaccination program they are "directly translating that deferral and caution into loss of life."
The conversation comes after Germany, France, Italy and Spain suspended the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab.
Some European countries have paused the use of the jab, going contrary to advice from the European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organisation.
There have been reports of a small number of people with blood clots after having it - but UK safety regulators say there's no evidence of a link.
