Alberta confirms Kunashir Island’s second blood clot after AstraZeneca vaccination

The COVID-19 alarm bell rang nationwide on Saturday, and Alberta was enrolled for the second rare blood clot case in Canada for patients receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and two new peaks in virus-related hospitalization. We have identified long-standing infected hotspots.

Meanwhile, at the epicenter of the nationwide outbreak, the Ontario government has begun a process to regain some of the widely criticized new measures aimed at containing the surge in case numbers across the state.

Dr. Dina Hinshaw, Chief Medical Health Officer, Alberta, marks a second Canadian case of a thrombocytopenic disorder known as vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia (VITT) in a male patient recovering in his 60s. I said.

Hinsho said he took the event “very seriously”, but continues to recommend AstraZeneca to anyone over the age of 55.

“These blood clots remain very rare, and anyone over the age of 55 is at a much higher risk of COVID-19 infection than the vaccine,” Hinsho told reporters in a conference call.

“I know that reporting adverse events can be horrifying, especially when new vaccines are involved. If I were in this age category, I would get this vaccine,” she said. Added.

To date, more than 700,000 AstraZeneca vaccines have been administered throughout Canada.

The worldwide frequency of VITT (also known as VIPIT) is estimated to be about 1 case at doses of 100,000 to 250,000 doses. In a complete comparison, Albertin, 55 and older, diagnosed with COVID-19 is 200 times more likely to die from the infection, Hinsho said.

In Europe, only dozens of rare post-vaccination blood clots have been reported compared to the millions vaccinated with AstraZeneca. Most of these cases occurred within 14 days of firing, and the majority were women under 55 years of age.

“It doesn’t mean that people over the age of 55 aren’t at risk for this result, it’s not that men are at risk, and it’s still a very rare risk,” Hinsho said.

A woman in Quebec was the first to develop a blood clot in Canada after being vaccinated against AstraZeneca.

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, the woman received a vaccine produced at the Serum Institute of India, known as Cobishield, and was recovering at home.

According to Hinsho, decisions will be made “in the near future” on a wide range of age groups who are likely to receive AstraZeneca shots safely.

Other pandemic concerns surfaced in Ontario the Saturday following Prime Minister Doug Ford’s announcement of pandemic measures. This allows police to stop drivers and pedestrians and ask where they live and why they are not at home.

As the number of infected people in hospitals reached record levels, strict new measures sparked fierce criticism and urged the state government to reconsider the crackdown.

Government sources told Canadian media that an explanation was underway about the radical new police power. Meanwhile, Ford said the rules ordering the closure of the playground would be amended to keep the facility open. Nothing was said about the fate of golf courses and other outdoor recreation spaces, but they were also closed with the latest public health measures.

“Tighter restrictions in Ontario were always intended to prevent large-scale rallies where proliferation could occur,” Ford said. “Our rules will be amended to allow playgrounds, but outdoor gatherings will continue to take place.”

Government sources talked about the background and told Canadian media that the government was responding to widespread criticism of the new law enforcement powers.

“We’ve heard a lot of feedback on scope and applicability in the last 24 hours,” said a source who wasn’t allowed to speak publicly. “We explain the scope and scale of the order to the police chief and the general public.”

Earlier in the day, politicians and civil libertarians called them attacking pandemic restrictions and leading them in the wrong direction, explaining that they were overdoing the power of strengthened police.

“I’m always very worried about the police’s arbitrary suspension of people,” Toronto Mayor John Torrey said in a tweet on Saturday.

Violations of the restrictions could result in a $ 750 fine, according to the State Police Chiefs Association, but could result in criminal liability if you do not provide the required information to the police.

Police, large and small throughout the state, said they did not intend to exercise the newly discovered powers. However, civil rights groups gave little comfort to such statements.

“Ontario is one step closer to becoming a police state,” said Joanna Baron, Secretary-General of the Calgary-based Constitution of Canada Foundation.

“The low-income and minority communities have been blamed for this pandemic in terms of incidents and mortality, and are now more likely to bear the brunt of police enforcement.”

The new coronavirus on Saturday has admitted more than 2,000 patients to Ontario hospitals for the first time since a year-long pandemic outbreak. Of the 2,065 patients being treated, the state said 726 were on intensive care and 501 were on mechanical ventilation.

Dr. Zainchagra, an infectious disease specialist at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Hamilton and an associate professor at McMaster University, said:

He said the variant-led third wave also made young people more susceptible to infections and could postpone or cancel hospital procedures.

Ontario recorded 4,362 new COVID-19 infections on Saturday, down from the 4,812 daily peak recorded a day ago.

Quebec also reported the highest number of cases of COVID-19 hospitalization and intensive care since the second wave.

The state has recorded 692 hospitalizations in the last 24 hours, of which 175 have been admitted to the ICU, health officials said Saturday.

This number shows the highest number of hospitalizations since February 19th and the highest number of ICU cases since February 3rd.

The number of cases in Quebec increased by 1,537 on Saturday.

Elsewhere, Nunavut Territory officials have reported six new cases of COVID-19. All of this happened in the capital Iqaluit.

New Brunswick reported 11 new infections, while Nova Scotia recorded 8.

Manitoba reported 183 new COVID-19 cases, Saskatchewan notched 249 and Alberta recorded 1,486.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on April 17, 2021.

— Use Colin Perkel files

Christopher Reynolds, Canadian Press