Covid-19 | Health authorities report fourth severe AEFI

A 29-year-old local man was diagnosed with thrombocytopenia also called Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP) days after being inoculated with a Covid-19 vaccine, the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Center has announced.
Since the condition manifested two days after the inoculation, the case has been recorded as a potential adverse event following immunization (AEFI).
The symptoms were blood rashes on the skin of the lips and limbs, called petechiae, appeared on June 18, two days after he took the first dose of Sinopharm’s inactivated virus vaccine at a public healthcare center.
After seeking medical treatment at the healthcare center, the man was transferred to the emergency department of the Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre where he remains hospitalized.
The case has been classified as a severe AEFI and was referred to Health Bureau’s special working group for further assessment.
The ITP condition occurs due to a drop of platelets in the blood. The platelets are responsible for blood clotting, which stops bleeding.
According to the medical research conducted hitherto, thrombocytopenia has many causes and while the medical community does not know exactly what causes primary ITP, they know that it happens when the immune system does not function correctly and the antibodies, which are supposed to attack infections, confuse blood platelets for intruders and mistakenly destroy them.
According to medical literature, secondary ITP usually occurs due to other health conditions such as viral or bacterial infections. RM