VOA慢速英语2021 欧洲药管局称可能发现血栓同阿斯利康疫苗之间的联系

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said Wednesday it has found a "possible link" between the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine¹ and rare cases of blood system blockages², known as blood clots³.

欧洲药品管理局周三表示，它可能发现了阿斯利康新冠疫苗与罕见血栓病例之间可能存在的联系。

The EMA announcement is the latest setback⁴ for a low-cost vaccine that was once called a "vaccine for the world." The AstraZeneca vaccine has been approved for emergency use in over 100 countries including Britain and the European Union. The vaccine is also a large part of the United Nations COVAX program to provide COVID-19 vaccines⁵ to poorer countries.

欧洲药管局的这则公告是这种曾被誉为“世界疫苗”的廉价疫苗遇到的最新挫折。阿斯利康疫苗已经被批准在包括英国和欧盟在内的100多个国家中紧急使用。该疫苗也是联合国新冠肺炎疫苗实施计划的重要组成部分，该计划旨在向贫穷国家提供新冠肺炎疫苗。

The agency advised that blood system blockages should be listed as "side effects" of the vaccine. It said women under the age of 60 represent most of the cases of blood clots reported so far. The problems, the agency said, happened within two weeks of vaccination⁶. The EMA said it was not "possible to identify specific risk factors."

该机构通告称，血栓应该被列为这种疫苗的副作用。它称60岁以下女性占到了迄今报告的绝大多数血栓病例。该机构称，这些问题发生在疫苗接种两个星期之内。欧洲药管局称其可能无法找出特定的风险因素。

EMA chief Emer Cooke spoke⁷ to reporters Wednesday. She said the risk of death from COVID is much greater than the risk of death from these side effects.

欧洲药管局局长埃莫·库克周三对记者发表了讲话。她说，新冠病毒的致死风险远大于这些副作用的致死风险。

The EMA and the World Health Organization have said repeatedly that the AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and effective.

欧洲药管局和世卫组织一再表示，阿斯利康疫苗是安全的。

Setbacks from the start

出师不利

Early in the pandemic, the AstraZeneca vaccine, developed with Britain's University of Oxford⁸, was considered a leading candidate against the coronavirus. It costs much less than other vaccines. It also does not require extreme cold storage, making it easier to use in countries with limited resources.

在大流行初期，阿斯利康公司同牛津大学共同研发的这种疫苗被认为是抵抗新冠病毒的主要候选药物。它的成本远低于其它疫苗。它还不需要极低温冷藏，这使得它更便于在资源有限的国家使用。

Last September, the company temporarily suspended the trials of the vaccine after a volunteer in Britain developed inflammation in her spine⁹. It was later found to be unrelated to the vaccine but led to a long delay in the United States.

去年9月，在一名英国志愿者脊椎发炎之后，该公司暂停了该疫苗的试验。后来发现它与疫苗无关，但是已经导致了疫苗试验在美国的长时间延误。

In March, about 13 European countries suspended their use of AstraZeneca vaccine after reports of possible blood clots linked to the shot. Most restarted with some age restrictions¹⁰ after the EMA said countries should continue to use the vaccine.

3月份在报道了与注射疫苗有关的血栓之后，大约有13个欧洲国家暂停了使用阿斯利康疫苗。在欧洲药管局表示各国应该继续使用这种疫苗之后，大多数国家在设置一定年龄限制后都重新开始接种。

A week later, the National Institute of Allergy¹¹ and Infectious Diseases, a U.S. health agency, released an unusual statement saying that "AstraZeneca might have included outdated¹² information from that trial, which may have provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data."

一周后，美国国家过敏和传染病研究所发表了一份不同寻常的声明，称阿斯利康可能包含了临床试验的过时信息，这可能提供了一份不完整的疗效数据。

On Wednesday, the Reuters news agency reported that EU health ministers planned to meet after the EMA's announcement.

路透社周三报道称，在欧洲药管局发布公告之后，欧洲卫生部长们计划会面。

Even officials in Asia said they were waiting to hear the EMA's decision. South Korea had temporarily suspended the use of AstraZeneca's vaccine in people 60 and younger. The country's health officials said Wednesday that they would also pause a plan to vaccinate¹³ teachers that was to begin on Thursday, while awaiting the results of the EMA's review.

甚至亚洲官员也表示，他们在等待听取欧洲药管局的决定。韩国已经暂停了在60岁及以下人群中使用阿斯利康疫苗。该国卫生官员周三表示，他们还将暂停原定于周四开始的一项教师接种计划，等待欧洲药管局的审查结果。

Dr. Peter English was a former head of the British Medical Association's Public Health Medicine Committee. He said questions over the vaccine could have serious consequences around the world.

皮特·英格利什曾担任英国医学协会公共卫生医学委员会主席。他说，关于这种疫苗的疑问可能会在世界范围内造成严重后果。

English told the Associated Press, "We can't afford not to use this vaccine if we are going to end the pandemic."

英格利什对美联社表示：“如果我们要结束这场大流行，就不能不使用这种疫苗。”

1 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

2 blockages   

n.堵塞物( blockage的名词复数 )；堵塞，阻塞

参考例句：

• The storms could increase the risks posed by river blockages. 暴风雨会增加因河道堵塞所造成的危险。 来自互联网
• An angiogram shows the location and severity of blockages in blood vessels. 冠状动脉造影能够显示血管内的阻塞位置以及阻塞的严重程度。 来自互联网

3 clots   

n.凝块( clot的名词复数 )；血块；蠢人；傻瓜v.凝固( clot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• When you cut yourself, blood clots and forms a scab. 你割破了，血会凝固、结痂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Milk clots when it turns sour. 奶变酸就凝块。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

5 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

6 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。

7 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

8 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

9 spine   

n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊

参考例句：

• He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
• His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

10 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

11 allergy   

n.(因食物、药物等而引起的)过敏症

参考例句：

• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。
• The patient had an allergy to penicillin.该患者对青霉素过敏。

12 outdated   

adj.旧式的，落伍的，过时的；v.使过时

参考例句：

• That list of addresses is outdated,many have changed.那个通讯录已经没用了，许多地址已经改了。
• Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears.我们许多人都遵循祖先立下的过时习俗。

13 vaccinate   

vt.给…接种疫苗；种牛痘

参考例句：

• Local health officials then can plan the best times to vaccinate people.这样，当地的卫生官员就可以安排最佳时间给人们接种疫苗。
• Doctors vaccinate us so that we do not catch smallpox.医生给我们打预防针使我们不会得天花。