European regulator declares AstraZeneca vaccine safe

AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine is safe and effective. This is the conclusion of the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The regulator concluded that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risk of side effects, that it does not increase the risk of blood clots, and that there is no evidence that blood clots can be associated with specific batches of the vaccine.

At the same time, the EMA acknowledged that "in very rare cases" the vaccine may be associated with the formation of blood clots caused by low platelets.

• In mid-March, most European countries suspended vaccination with AstraZeneca after reports of blood clots in people who had been vaccinated.
• On March 16, the WHO deemed AstraZeneca's vaccine safe and recommended continued use. On March 18, medical regulators in the UK and the Netherlands came out with similar conclusions.