Got a COVID 19 question

– Ask Dr Thomas Robinson at our Mt Druitt Clinic

Why should I get a COVID-19 immunisation?

Getting a COVID-19 vaccination helps protect you, your community, and your loved ones. Both the available COVID-19 vaccines are very good at protecting against severe COVID-19 related illness and death. You can talk to your GP or a health professional about the COVID-19 vaccines and why vaccination is an important part of keeping the community safe and healthy.

Does the COVID-19 immunisation cause blood clots?

There are two types of COVID-19 immunisation available at the moment in Australia. One of the COVID-19 vaccines is associated with a very rare risk of a condition called thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, or TTS. TTS involves blood clots (thrombosis) along with low platelet levels (thrombocytopenia) and can occur around 4-28 days after vaccination. It is currently estimated to affect around 18 people per million doses.

Not all COVID-19 vaccines associated with a risk of TTS. Not all clots that occur after COVID-19 immunisation will be due to TTS. Blood clotting problems occur commonly in the population. Annually, common clots such as deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism (a clot in the lungs) will affect about 1 in a 1,000 people in Australia, unrelated to any vaccine. TTS is a unique, new condition that requires certain blood tests to confirm it.