Inquest says doctor died of COVID-19 jab complication
An inquest in the UK has concluded that the death of a UK doctor in January 2021 shortly after being immunised against COVID-19 was a “rare and unintended complication” of the vaccine he received.
32-year-old psychologist Stephen Wright died 10 days after receiving a first does of AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria vaccine, which formed the backbone of the UK’s defence against the pandemic, before being largely superseded by mRNA vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna – which have also been linked to rare side effects.
Senior coroner Andrew Harris agreed that a blood clot in Wright’s brain was likely to have been a result of vaccination with Vaxzevria in what was a “very unusual and deeply tragic case.”
While clotting reactions known as cerebrovascular venous and sinus thrombosis (CVST) are known to be a very rare consequence of Vaxzevria, and are listed on the product’s label, at the time the shot was still in the earliest stages of its rollout and the risk had not been identified.
The record of inquest notes that Wright’s cause of death was a brain-stem infarction, acute intracerebral haemorrhage, and vaccine-induced thrombosis and thrombocytopenia (VITT).
He awoke with a headache on 25th January, later developed arm numbness, and attended A&E shortly afterwards, where he was diagnosed with high blood pressure and clot in the sagittal area of the brain. He was transferred to King’s College London for emergency treatment, but was unable to have surgery due to the extent of the bleed and low platelet counts.
Harris said during the inquest that is it “very important to record as fact that it is the AstraZeneca vaccine – but that is different from blaming AstraZeneca.”
That may be pertinent, as Wright’s widow Charlotte Wright is reported to be engaged in legal action against the pharma company, along with dozens of other people, according to a BBC report. She has campaigned to get the wording on her husband’s death certificate changed from “natural causes.”
In a statement, AZ said it was “saddened by Stephen Wright’s death” and extended its “deepest sympathies to his family for their loss”. It reiterated, however, that “the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of extremely rare potential side effects.”
Charlotte Wright has received £120,000 in compensation from the UK government’s Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS), and has been supporting others in their fight to reform the scheme. As of 21st March, 4,178 claims had been received under the scheme, 1,165 had undergone medical assessment, and 63 claimants have received payments.
