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Austria suspends use of batch of Covid jab after death of nurse

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Austria suspends use of batch of Covid jab after death of nurse
Covid vaccine. Photo: Tiziana FABI / AFP

Authorities in Austria have stopped vaccinations with a batch of AstraZeneca's inoculation against the coronavirus, after one person died and another became seriously ill after receiving their jabs.

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"The Federal Office for Safety in Health Care (BASG) has received two reports in a temporal connection with a vaccination from the same batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the district clinic of Zwettl” in Lower Austria province, the local health authority said.

“Currently there is no evidence of a causal relationship with the vaccination,” the BASG said, adding that it would now investigate the incidents further.

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A 49-year-old woman died as a result of severe coagulation disorders, an illness related to the blood's ability to clot.

The woman was admitted to the intensive care unit of Vienna General Hospital last weekend after initially being treated at a hospital in Lower Austria. A day after being admitted, the woman died.

"The woman received the first partial vaccination of a Covid19 vaccine ten days before hospital admission," a spokesperson for the Vienna hospital told the Niederoesterreichische Nachrichten.

Meanwhile, a 35-year-old female developed a pulmonary embolism and is now recovering. A pulmonary embolism is a lung disease that is caused by a dislodged blood clot.

Several local news organization reported that both women were nurses working at the local hospital.

Anton Heinzl, from the centre-left said that "we have to wait for the results of the inquiry. After all, it is an approved vaccine. We first have to see if there is a connection with these cases."

The far-right FPÖ said on Saturday that "until a connection can be ruled out with certainty, vaccinations with the AstraZeneca vaccine must be suspended with immediate effect."

SEE ALSO: Austria changes course again on AstraZeneca vaccine

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