Inoculations link to risk of health issues
COVID vaccines can increase the risk of neurological complications, a study has revealed.
Experts found certain jabs are linked to health problems such as stroke and the rare Guillain-Barre syndrome.
But coronavirus infections lead to a much greater increase in the risk than a first dose of the AstraZeneca or Pfizer inoculations, it was claimed.
The Oxford University research looked at the medical records of more than 32 million people in England.
Study co-leader Martina Patone, medical statistician at Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, said: “We found different risks for different types of neurological condition depending on which vaccine people received.
“However, these were substantially lower than the risks occurring in association with a positive Covid-19 PCR test.”
The study looked at cases of hospital admissions and deaths of patients with neurological conditions within 28 days of either a first vaccination or Covid-19 infection.
It could not prove whether the vaccines or infections caused the complications, but identified signs of an increase in risk.
It found that among 10 million people who had the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab, an extra 38 cases of GuillainBarre syndrome could be expected, compared with if they had not got the jab.
The condition mainly affects the feet and hands and causes numbness, weakness and pain.
However, for 10 million people who tested positive for Covid-19, an extra 145 cases of Guillain–Barre syndrome could be expected.
Stroke
Among 10 million people who received the Pfizer/ BioNTech vaccine, an extra 60 cases of haemorrhagic stroke could be expected.
There was also a higher stroke risk for people who caught Covid-19, but only in the first week after a positive test.
Aziz Sheikh, from the University of Edinburgh, said: “There are risks clearly associated with the vaccines, but there are more substantial risks associated with getting the infection.”
The findings are published in the journal Nature Medicine.