In April 2021, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended a temporary pause in the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine after reports of a rare blood clotting disorder in a small number of people who had received the vaccine.
The blood clotting disorder, known as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST), was found in six women between the ages of 18 and 48 who had received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. One of the women died, and another is in critical condition. The CDC and FDA said that they were pausing the use of the vaccine out of an abundance of caution while they investigate the reports.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is one of three COVID-19 vaccines that have been authorized for emergency use in the United States. Unlike the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which use mRNA technology, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine uses a viral vector to deliver a piece of the coronavirus’s genetic material into the body to trigger an immune response.
The pause in the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is expected to be temporary, and the CDC and FDA have said that they are working to gather more information about the blood clotting cases. They have also emphasized that the cases are very rare, and that the benefits of the vaccine in preventing COVID-19 still outweigh the risks for most people.
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