Health authorities investigate Australian woman's bruising after COVID-19 jab

SYDNEY, May 10 (Xinhua) -- An 80-year-old woman in the state of Western Australian (WA) developed bruising all over her body after receiving the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, and health authorities are investigating the case.

People visit a mass vaccination centre to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in Melbourne on April 21, 2021. (File photo: AFP)

Local media cited her daughter saying there was only a spot on the woman's tongue but it got bigger overnight. It progressed very quickly to the inside of her gums bleeding and everywhere she touched on her body came out in a huge dark bruise straight away.

The family said on Saturday that the blood test the grandmother was taken by the Royal Flying Doctor Service showed that her platelet count had dropped to zero, local media PerthNow reported.

Her platelet count has increased slightly over the last few days to 10 and "she is now responding to steroid treatment. We hope for this to continue so she can recover at home," the family said.

WA Health told Xinhua on Monday that the case is still under investigation and reporting an adverse reaction after immunization does not mean the event occurred as a result of the vaccination.

"It is an important component of comprehensive vaccine safety monitoring and enables timely identification of any potential safety signals," the health department said.