SALT LAKE CITY — Doctors at the University of Utah announced Wednesday they have treated just the third male in the U.S. to have rare blood clots that may have been caused by the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The patient, a Utah man described as"below 50," first showed signs of vaccine-induced Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia, or VITT, around ten days after receiving the vaccine in April. After a week of leg pain, he went to the emergency room where he was placed on blood thinners and sent home.
However, he returned the next day with chest pains, which led to a discovery of blood clots in his lungs.
After a few days on blood thinners, the patient's platelet count was normal and he returned home, where his condition continues to improve.
Dr. Abou-Ismail of the University of Utah stressed that VITT is very rare, with just 17 confirmed cases in the country. The Utah patient is the third man to be believed to have VITT; the first was in a Johnson & Johnson trial, and the second was reported last week in California, but not yet confirmed.
Johnson & Johnson vaccinations were paused in April after cases of blood clots appeared in those who received the vaccine. Following a safety review, the pause was lifted.