Europe's drug regulator was set Tuesday to rule on the safety of the J&J single-shot vaccine after fears it could cause extremely rare clots
Europe's drug regulator was set Tuesday to rule on the safety of the J&J single-shot vaccine after fears it could cause extremely rare clots AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS

A 20-year-old woman in Slovenia died of a brain hemorrhage just days after receiving the single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, leading the government to temporarily suspend the vaccine’s distribution.

The woman, whose identity has not been revealed to the public, was hospitalized on Monday at the Ljubljana University Medical Center a few days after she received the J&J COVID-19 shot. She later died of a brain hemorrhage and blood clots.

"The patient had blood clots and bleeding in the brain at the same time, intensive care was not successful," Igor Rigler, a neurologist at the Ljubljana hospital center, told the STA national news agency.

The officials did not elaborate when the woman received her vaccine. But according to The Associated Press, the woman received the J&J shot two weeks prior to her death.

Slovenian health officials have now suspended the use of the Janssen vaccine while they are still investigating whether there was a link between the vaccine and the woman’s death.

"The health ministry has called on the Public Health Institute to temporarily suspend vaccinations with the Janssen vaccine until all details related to this case are cleared up," Health Minister Janez Poklukar said in a statement, according to RTE.

A spokesperson for Janssen, a J&J subsidiary that developed the single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, said they will review reports of adverse events in people who received their shots.

"There is no greater priority than the safety and well-being of the people we serve, and we carefully review reports of adverse events in individuals receiving our medicines or vaccines,” the spokesperson told The Hill.

Previously, health officials have confirmed a causal relationship between the death of one patient and the J&J COVID-19 vaccine shot. As of Thursday, more than 120,000 residents in Slovenia have received the Janssen shot.

The announcement comes after health officials on Tuesday recorded 1,039 new COVID-19 cases across the country, bringing the nation’s seven-day average of new infections to 845. Slovenian officials also reported 9 new deaths on Tuesday.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Slovenia has reported 290,994 COVID-19 infections and 4,553 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Multiple studies have shown that full vaccination prevents infection with symptoms and hospitalisation, for both Alpha and Delta variants

Multiple studies have shown that full vaccination prevents infection with symptoms and hospitalisation, for both Alpha and Delta variants Photo: AFP / ISHARA S. KODIKARA