(Adds details from EMA statement on other vaccines, background)
May 7 (Reuters) - Europe's medicines regulator said on
Friday it was reviewing reports of a rare nerve-degenerating
disorder in people who have received AstraZeneca's
COVID-19 vaccine, and requested more detailed data on the cases
from the company.
As part of a regular review of safety reports for the
vaccine, Vaxzevria, the European Medicines Agency's safety
committee is analysing data provided on cases of Guillain-Barre
syndrome, the regulator said.
The EMA is also looking into reports of heart inflammation
with Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine, called
Comirnaty, and Moderna's shot, it said. Both the
vaccines use new mRNA technology to build immunity against the
coronavirus.
The EMA and other regulators are already reviewing the
possibility of rare blood clotting conditions with COVID-19
vaccines, including AstraZeneca's.
Guillain-Barré Syndrome is a rare neurological condition in
which the body's immune system attacks the protective coating on
nerve fibres. Most cases follow a bacterial or viral infection,
and develop over the course of days or weeks.
It is an extremely rare, known risk associated with
respiratory and gut infections, as well as some vaccinations in
the past.
AstraZeneca, Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna did not
immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka and Yadarisa Shabong in
Bengaluru, Ludwig Burger in Frankfurt and Kate Kelland in
London; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli, Bernard Orr)
Astrazeneca (AZN)
