Whether a link exists between the recently distributed COVID-19 vaccine and reported cases of the sudden development of a rare blood disorder is still under investigation.
Emerging Blood Disorder
A day after receiving the first dose of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine, Luz Legaspi a 72-year-old reported waking up with bruised arms and legs, and blisters that bled in her mouth.
She was later hospitalized in New York City on January 19th with a severe case of immune thrombocytopenia or a lack of platelets, a vital blood component for clotting, the New York Times reports.
The same condition was reportedly the cause behind the death of Dr. Gregory Michael, aged 56, an obstetrician in Miami Beach in January whose symptoms appeared three days after receiving a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Administered treatments to restore platelets fail after two weeks of hospitalization that led to the Dr's death due to brain hemorrhage.
It isn't definitive that the rare blood disorder was related to the COVID-19 vaccines administered. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 42 million Americans have received at least the first dose of COVID vaccines with 36 similar cases reported by the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System by the end of January.
Cases involved were either the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the only authorized vaccine for emergency use in the U.S.
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What is Thrombocytopenia?
According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, thrombocytopenia is a medical condition where the blood has lower than normal platelets--blood cell fragments.
When blood has a low platelet count, it could lead to mild to serious bleeding inside the body, underneath the skin, or on the surface of the skin.
The normal platelet count for adults ranges from 150,000-450,000 platelets per microliter of blood.
Thrombocytopenia is often caused by the lack of platelets produced by the bone marrow, or the body destroys the platelets produced.
Did the COVID-19 Vaccine Cause a Rare Blood Disorder?
The Food and Drug Administration, together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is currently looking into the reports of rare blood disorders post-vaccination. However, the rates of reports of the condition are not higher than the normal rates found in the U.S populations, so cases might be incidental.
Overall, experts say that the vaccines are safe with only a small number of severe allergic reactions reported.
Pfizer said in a statement, "We take reports of adverse events very seriously," adding that the company is aware of thrombocytopenia reports in vaccine recipients. The statement also included that Pfizer is currently collating relevant information to be shared with the F.D.A.
However, at this time, the company has yet to establish a causal association between the vaccine and reports of a rare blood disorder.
Moderna also issued a statement that although it did not address platelet disorder questions, it says the company is "Continuously monitors the safety of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine using all sources of data."
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