A second person in B.C. has been diagnosed with a rare blood-clotting disorder after receiving a dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
The man, in his 40s, is currently recovering in a Fraser Health region hospital, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Thursday (May 13).
Vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic, or VITT, is a serious health condition.
It occurs when an immune response stimulated in a person’s platelets, causing a different type of clotting than common blood disorders.
“We are following this carefully,” she said, urging anyone vaccinated in recent weeks to be on the lookout for potential side effects.
“Recognizing the symptoms and getting treatment early is important.”
READ MORE: What do you do if you think you have VITT? What we know of the rare clotting disorder
VITT symptoms include severe headaches, abdominal or back pain, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting and swelling or redness in a limb.
There is a test to determine whether a person has the disorder, Henry said.
Current research shows it affects around one in every 100,000 people who receive the AstraZeneca vaccine. In the province, more than 200,000 doses have been administered.
Earlier this month, a woman in her 40s in the Vancouver Coastal Health region became the first person diagnosed in B.C.
RELATED: Alberta confirms blood clot disorder death linked to AstraZeneca vaccine
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