Japan: Black particles found in Moderna vaccine, batch put on hold

Japan has put on hold a batch of Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine after a pharmacist saw several black particles in one vial of the vaccine.

The pharmacist saw some foreign substance in one vial of the vaccine in Kanagawa Prefecture while checking it before use, according to authorities.

Some 3,790 people had already received shots from the batch. The rest of the batch has now been put on hold, reports the BBC.

Earlier, Japan suspended the use of about 1.63 million Moderna doses due to contamination.

Takeda Pharmaceutical, which sells and distributes the vaccine in Japan, had last week put three batches of the vaccine on hold after "foreign materials" were found in some doses.

Japan's Health Minister Norihisa Tamura on Tuesday said that the foreign matter found in Moderna Inc Covid-19 vaccines in the southern prefecture of Okinawa were caused likely when needles where stuck into the vials.

--IANS

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