UPDATE: Italy 'strongly recommends' AstraZeneca Covid vaccine for over-60s only
Italy's top panel of health experts on Friday strengthened its recommendation that the AstraZeneca vaccine should be given to over-60s, after several Italian regions launched vaccination drives to offer unused doses to young adults.
Following a review this week, the head of government's scientific committee (CTS) Franco Locatelli said the panel "strongly recommended" that the AstraZeneca vaccine be used on over-60s.
Those aged under 60 who have already had the AstraZeneca jab should now get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine for the second dose, he said.
Italy has so far been giving people both doses of the same vaccine, following advice from the country's drug regulator AIFA.
READ ALSO: Which Italian regions are offering Covid vaccine appointments to over-12s?
The review came this week as health authorities announced that an 18-year-old in north-west Italy who was vaccinated with AstraZeneca two weeks ago had died after developing a blood clot.
Health minister Roberto Speranza said at the press conference that the new advice "will be interpreted by the government in a peremptory way, and not just as a recommendation".
The decision to give AstraZeneca only to over-60s "will have some effect on the vaccination campaign, but I'm sure that in July and August we will be able to mitigate this impact," Emergency Commissioner Francesco Figliuolo said.
AstraZeneca remains approved for adults of all ages in Italy, but the new advice strengthens a previous Health Ministry recommendation for “preferential use of AstraZeneca on people over the age of 60” due to a small number of cases worldwide of unusual blood clots in younger people who had recently received the vaccine.
Despite the previous advice to use the vaccine on over-60s, a number of Italian regions have been offering the Covid-19 vaccine to younger adults as part of vaccination "open days": special vaccination drives, often at evenings or weekends, that allow the youngest age groups to get a shot earlier than they otherwise might.
In most cases the doses available at these drives are AstraZeneca, also known as Vaxzevria.
Several regions have found themselves with unused doses of the Oxford University vaccine, as people opt to get vaccinated with alternatives that they perceive as safer or that have a shorter interval between doses (or in the case of Johnson & Johnson, require just one shot).
The CTS gave the green light to AstraZeneca “open days” in May, when it said it did not object to regions offering the vaccine to over-18s on a voluntary basis.
In recent days, several Italian health experts have called on the government to restrict the use of AstraZeneca on younger adults out of caution.
Health think tank the GIMBE Foundation argued that both AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines should be reserved for over-50s, on the grounds that younger adults in Italy are currently at very low risk of falling seriously ill with Covid-19 and the vaccines’ risk-benefit ratio for this age group is therefore different.
GIMBE has called for younger people to receive either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, which work differently from the AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson vaccines and have not been associated with the same side effects.
To date, most of the rare cases of blood clots observed after vaccination with AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson have been reported in younger adults, prompting some EU countries to restrict their use to older age groups.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) says it is not yet clear what the risk factors are, and that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine continue to outweigh the very low chance of side effects.
EXPLAINED: Why has Italy recommended the AstraZeneca vaccine for over-60s only?
One planned vaccination drive in Naples has already been cancelled in anticipation of the CTS's decision, while other regional health services have chosen to offer only Pfizer or Moderna vaccines to people aged between 12 and 59.
There was also alarm after two young women, one aged 18 and another 34, were admitted to intensive care in Genoa this week with blood clots, around a fortnight after receiving a first dose of AstraZeneca from the same batch.
The younger woman died on June 10th, local authorities announced.
The regional health authority has withdrawn the batch in question throughout Liguria as a precautionary measure, it said on Thursday.
AstraZeneca vaccination drives remain underway or scheduled in several parts of Italy, including Lazio, the region around Rome, which is currently running an AstraZeneca "open week" for over-18s until June 13th.
READ ALSO:
- ‘Be tenacious as hell’: How people in Italy have managed to get vaccinated without a health card
- How can you book a Covid vaccination appointment in Italy?
- The essential Italian vocab for getting tested or vaccinated for Covid-19
Around a third of all doses of AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson administered in Italy in the past three weeks – more than 470,000 – went to under-50s, according to GIMBE.
Most of the side effects observed so far occurred within two weeks of the first dose. The second dose is thought to carry an even lower risk, though more data is needed to know for sure.
Data from millions of people vaccinated with AstraZeneca across Europe and the UK indicates that serious side effects after either dose remain extremely rare.
In a monitoring report released this week, AIFA said that in Italy the incidence of blood clots after vaccination was around one per 100,000 injections of AstraZeneca, mainly in people under 60. It has not received reports of any clots developing after the second dose, the agency said.
“All vaccines are safe,” Health Minister Roberto Speranza told parliament on Thursday, while confirming that the CTS was reviewing its advice on the use of AstraZeneca in young people.
What symptoms should people watch out for?
The EMA advises seeking medical help immediately if you notice any of these symptoms after getting vaccinated:
- shortness of breath
- chest pain
- swelling in your leg
- persistent abdominal pain
- neurological symptoms, including severe and persistent headaches or blurred vision
- tiny blood spots under the skin beyond the site of injection
Early medical treatment can prevent complications and help lead to recovery, the agency says.
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Following a review this week, the head of government's scientific committee (CTS) Franco Locatelli said the panel "strongly recommended" that the AstraZeneca vaccine be used on over-60s.
Those aged under 60 who have already had the AstraZeneca jab should now get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine for the second dose, he said.
Italy has so far been giving people both doses of the same vaccine, following advice from the country's drug regulator AIFA.
READ ALSO: Which Italian regions are offering Covid vaccine appointments to over-12s?
The review came this week as health authorities announced that an 18-year-old in north-west Italy who was vaccinated with AstraZeneca two weeks ago had died after developing a blood clot.
Health minister Roberto Speranza said at the press conference that the new advice "will be interpreted by the government in a peremptory way, and not just as a recommendation".
The decision to give AstraZeneca only to over-60s "will have some effect on the vaccination campaign, but I'm sure that in July and August we will be able to mitigate this impact," Emergency Commissioner Francesco Figliuolo said.
AstraZeneca remains approved for adults of all ages in Italy, but the new advice strengthens a previous Health Ministry recommendation for “preferential use of AstraZeneca on people over the age of 60” due to a small number of cases worldwide of unusual blood clots in younger people who had recently received the vaccine.
Despite the previous advice to use the vaccine on over-60s, a number of Italian regions have been offering the Covid-19 vaccine to younger adults as part of vaccination "open days": special vaccination drives, often at evenings or weekends, that allow the youngest age groups to get a shot earlier than they otherwise might.
In most cases the doses available at these drives are AstraZeneca, also known as Vaxzevria.
Several regions have found themselves with unused doses of the Oxford University vaccine, as people opt to get vaccinated with alternatives that they perceive as safer or that have a shorter interval between doses (or in the case of Johnson & Johnson, require just one shot).
The CTS gave the green light to AstraZeneca “open days” in May, when it said it did not object to regions offering the vaccine to over-18s on a voluntary basis.
In recent days, several Italian health experts have called on the government to restrict the use of AstraZeneca on younger adults out of caution.
Health think tank the GIMBE Foundation argued that both AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines should be reserved for over-50s, on the grounds that younger adults in Italy are currently at very low risk of falling seriously ill with Covid-19 and the vaccines’ risk-benefit ratio for this age group is therefore different.
GIMBE has called for younger people to receive either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, which work differently from the AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson vaccines and have not been associated with the same side effects.
To date, most of the rare cases of blood clots observed after vaccination with AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson have been reported in younger adults, prompting some EU countries to restrict their use to older age groups.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) says it is not yet clear what the risk factors are, and that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine continue to outweigh the very low chance of side effects.
EXPLAINED: Why has Italy recommended the AstraZeneca vaccine for over-60s only?
One planned vaccination drive in Naples has already been cancelled in anticipation of the CTS's decision, while other regional health services have chosen to offer only Pfizer or Moderna vaccines to people aged between 12 and 59.
There was also alarm after two young women, one aged 18 and another 34, were admitted to intensive care in Genoa this week with blood clots, around a fortnight after receiving a first dose of AstraZeneca from the same batch.
The younger woman died on June 10th, local authorities announced.
The regional health authority has withdrawn the batch in question throughout Liguria as a precautionary measure, it said on Thursday.
AstraZeneca vaccination drives remain underway or scheduled in several parts of Italy, including Lazio, the region around Rome, which is currently running an AstraZeneca "open week" for over-18s until June 13th.
READ ALSO:
- ‘Be tenacious as hell’: How people in Italy have managed to get vaccinated without a health card
- How can you book a Covid vaccination appointment in Italy?
- The essential Italian vocab for getting tested or vaccinated for Covid-19
Around a third of all doses of AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson administered in Italy in the past three weeks – more than 470,000 – went to under-50s, according to GIMBE.
Most of the side effects observed so far occurred within two weeks of the first dose. The second dose is thought to carry an even lower risk, though more data is needed to know for sure.
Data from millions of people vaccinated with AstraZeneca across Europe and the UK indicates that serious side effects after either dose remain extremely rare.
In a monitoring report released this week, AIFA said that in Italy the incidence of blood clots after vaccination was around one per 100,000 injections of AstraZeneca, mainly in people under 60. It has not received reports of any clots developing after the second dose, the agency said.
“All vaccines are safe,” Health Minister Roberto Speranza told parliament on Thursday, while confirming that the CTS was reviewing its advice on the use of AstraZeneca in young people.
What symptoms should people watch out for?
The EMA advises seeking medical help immediately if you notice any of these symptoms after getting vaccinated:
- shortness of breath
- chest pain
- swelling in your leg
- persistent abdominal pain
- neurological symptoms, including severe and persistent headaches or blurred vision
- tiny blood spots under the skin beyond the site of injection
Early medical treatment can prevent complications and help lead to recovery, the agency says.
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