Cerebral Venous Thrombosis (CVT) Following COVID-19 Vaccination: an Umbrella Review of Systematic Reviews

 This umbrella review presents comprehensive data on the evidence of the association between cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) and COVID-19 vaccinations.

 We searched related databases to access issue-related systematic reviews both with meta‐analyses and without it that studied the connotation between COVID 19 vaccination and CVT in any languages on March 1, 2022. Two reviewers independently extracted the data using the JBI Form for Data Extraction in Systematic Reviews and Research Syntheses.

The primary search resulted in 886 titles, and finally, 48 full texts were selected, and of these, 12 qualitative systematic reviews or quantitative meta-analyses were eligible for the umbrella review. No study was excluded based on using the JBI checklist for critical appraisal. The results revealed that cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) from the COVID-19 vaccine could occur in any age group, in both sexes, and with all types of vaccine. However, young females were the predominantly affected cases. Although more common in adenovirus vaccine types, vaccines consisting of mRNA are not free from side effects. Headache was the most typical clinical symptom. Thrombocytopenia, PF4 IgG Assay, and d-Dimer evaluation were positive in many reported studies.

 The results showed that CVST from the COVID-19 vaccine can happen without age limitation for both sexes and all vaccine types. Although CVST is a life-threatening condition, early diagnosis and, most importantly, its management can be life-saving for patients. The overall balance of risk and benefit in favor of vaccination is positive in all of the included studies in the current umbrella review.