Blood Clot formation after COVID Vaccination

This article is about blood clot formation after getting the COVID-19 vaccination. 

In recent news, from DW, Deutsche Welle,

Denmark, Iceland and Norway have stopped administering the shot while Italy has banned the use of a batch of AstraZeneca doses as a precaution after an unconfirmed number of people developed blood clots.

According to the Danish Health Minister Magnus Heunicke,

“It is currently not possible to conclude whether there is a link. We are acting early, it needs to be thoroughly investigated”

Polly Roy, a virologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told DW that she believes the clots were, however, “probably not due to the vaccine itself.”

“Maybe they have some underlying problem,” said Roy.

But is a connection possible between the COVID vaccine and blood clots? Here is what we know about COVID-19 and blood clots.  

Serious Cases of COVID-19 show blood clots

During the early part of the pandemic in April 2020, the article  Coagulopathy and Antiphospholipid Antibodies in Patients with Covid-19 was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The article talked about 3 patients who have COVID-19 and a tendency to develop blood clots. 

In May 2020, doctors from France reported that patients hospitalized for Covid‐19 severe infection are more prone to excessive coagulation activation leading to blood clot formation. They recommended that early anticoagulant therapy should be given early in the course of COVID-19.

Early anticoagulation is important since blood clot formation within the blood vessels can cause multi-organ failures and deaths. 

Successful Treatment of COVID-19 requires Anticoagulation

The MATH+ treatment protocol from the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance includes a blood thinner called Low Molecular Weight Heparin (LMWH). 

LMWH prevents the formation of blood clots and preserves organ perfusion and function. 

The MATH+ Protocol Results in Greater Survival in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients provides more detail about the treatment.

Antiphospholipid antibodies develop in some COVID-19 patients.

The human body contains phospholipids. They are found in cell membranes. The cell membrane separates the inside of the cells from the outer environment. 

Some antibodies formed against the SARS-COV-2 can also attack the phospholipids in the human body. Those antiphospholipid antibodies can then attack the blood cells and lining of the blood vessels. 

If the blood cells that are attacked are part of the clotting mechanism, then clotting happens. This is also made worse if the inside lining of the blood vessels is also attacked by the immune system, making them rough and prone to clotting.

The resulting highly coagulable state leads to a decrease if not stoppage of the blood flow due to the blood clots in the blood vessels. 

Antiphospholipid and other autoimmune diseases arising from COVID-19 are listed in several scientific papers like COVID-19 and autoimmune diseases and SARS-CoV-2, the autoimmune virus.

There is a condition called Catastrophic Antiphospholipid Syndrome or CAPS in small, medium, and large blood vessels leading to multi-system organ failure. Fortunately, It is sporadic. 

Molecular Mimicry and Antiphospholipid antibodies

The proteins of viruses are made up of the same 20 amino acids present in humans.

Molecular mimicry is when a protein sequence in some parts of a microbe, like a virus, is similar to human proteins.

Antibodies or immune responses generated towards the viral protein that mimic human proteins can lead to an autoimmune disease. 

For example, if protein sequences in the SARS-COV-2 look similar to human phospholipids, the antibodies formed can also attack the human phospholipids. 

COVID-19 Vaccines, whether from Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson, Moderna, the Russian Sputnik V, and AstraZeneca, all have the spike protein from the SARS-COV-2. 

Molecular mimicry can also happen with the spike protein in the COVID vaccines. That is why they can all potentially form blood clots. 

Knowledge about Covid-19 is rapidly evolving. Information may update as new studies are made. Stay current by subscribing. Feel free to share.

Don’t Get Sick!

Related readings:

1. Deadly Autoimmune Antibodies
2. COVID-19, Autoimmunity, and Vaccination Part 3
3. The Long COVID-19 Syndrome and What to Do About It
4. The I-MASK+ for the Prophylaxis and Early Treatment Protocol of COVID-19
5. COVID-19, Autoimmunity, and Vaccination Part 2
6. 60% may already have Immunity to COVID-19
7. Molecular Mimicry between the SARS-CoV-2 and the Breathing Center
8. COVID-19, Autoimmunity, and Vaccination Part 1
9. Antibodies to COVID-19 can Exist in the Uninfected.
10. Sugar Increases Blood Pressure, Weight, Worsens Diabetes and COVID-19 Outcomes
11. Blood Vessel Damage in Severe Covid-19 Patients
12. Skin Signs of Secret Sickness

References:

Moon Ley Tung, Bryce Tan, Robin Cherian, Bharatendu Chandra, Anti-phospholipid syndrome and COVID-19 thrombosis: connecting the dots, Rheumatology Advances in Practice, Volume 5, Issue 1, 2021, rkaa081, https://doi.org/10.1093/rap/rkaa081

Halpert G, Shoenfeld Y. SARS-CoV-2, the autoimmune virus. Autoimmun Rev. 2020;19(12):102695. doi:10.1016/j.autrev.2020.102695

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