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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
National

'Continuous review' of jabs post-Central Coast woman's death

Prof John Skerritt says the case of a woman who died after an AstraZeneca vaccination was atypical.

Federal authorities will continuously review all vaccines in use following the death of a 48-year-old woman considered linked to the AstraZeneca COVID-19 jab.

A safety group convened by the Therapeutic Goods Administration has concluded the NSW woman's case of blood clots with low platelet count was likely to do with her vaccination on April 8.

Her condition was known as thrombosis with thrombocytopenia.

TGA officials say Genene Norris also suffered from several other chronic health conditions.

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Government advice surrounding the use of the AstraZeneca jab was changed later on the same day she was inoculated, with Australians under 50 urged not to take it.

Ms Norris was admitted to hospital four days later and died last week.

Genene Norris. Picture: facebook

TGA secretary John Skerritt said her case was "atypical" and further review of her underlying conditions and other blood tests and samples would be taken.

The case is likely to be the subject of an inquest.

It is the third in Australia involving blood clots with low platelet count post-vaccination, with the first two cases still in hospital.

Some 885,000 AstraZeneca doses have been administered in Australia so far.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has extended his condolences to Ms Norris' family and says the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) will now conduct "continuous review" of all vaccines.

"Throughout the course of the pandemic, we have followed the medical advice and we will continue to do that ... sometimes that leads to difficult and hard decisions," he told reporters on Saturday.

Professor Kelly confirmed some Australians have been reluctant to receive a vaccine since the medical advice on the AstraZeneca jab was updated.

However he stressed the vaccines were safer than the alternative, quoting a Oxford University study which found the risk of blood clots in the brain is eight times more likely after a COVID-19 infection than an AstraZeneca jab.

Meanwhile, COVID-19 appears to have jumped between neighbouring rooms in hotel quarantine in Sydney after seven cases from two family groups were revealed on Saturday to have the same viral sequence.

They may have to be reclassified as locally-acquired.

The groups arrived from different countries on different days and stayed in adjacent rooms on the 12th floor of the Adina Apartments Hotel.

Australian Associated Press

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