WHO urges nations to closely monitor adverse effects of any vaccine in use

All countries should closely monitor adverse health effects related to the use of any vaccine, a spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) said

All countries should closely monitor adverse health effects related to the use of any vaccine, a spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) told Sputnik following the suspension of the AstraZeneca drug in several EU countries.

A number of European states have suspended vaccination with the AstraZeneca drug as a precaution after reports on severe side-effects, including blood clots, that were allegedly triggered by the vaccine. The European Medicines Agency said there was currently no indication that the reported negative effects had been caused by the vaccination.

"WHO encourages all countries to continue to carefully monitor for any adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) with any vaccine and to report any serious cases of AEFIs to the global AEFI surveillance database," the spokesperson said on late Thursday.

The WHO's Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS) reviews all the reports on the vaccines' safety, according to the organization's representative.

"WHO's Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS) systematically reviews any vaccine safety signals and concerns related to COVID-19 vaccine safety, to advise WHO on any new safety signals or concerns related to COVID-19 vaccines," the spokesperson said.

The World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020. To date, more than 118.34 million people have been infected with the coronavirus worldwide, with over 2.62 million fatalities, according to Johns Hopkins University.