Atlanta, Georgia – An expert advisory panel to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday decided to postpone a decision on the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine, the use of which has been temporarily suspended over its possible blood clot links.

After a short-term emergency meeting, the CDC panel said it needs to collect more information before recommending further action.

The CDC and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made their recommendation to pause the Johnson & Johnson vaccine roll-out on Tuesday after six blood clot cases were reported among the nearly 7 million people who have received the jab in the country.

All six cases of cerebral thrombosis involved women aged 18 to 48. The clots developed between six and 13 days after inoculation, the agencies said.

In three cases, low levels of blood platelets (thrombocytopenia) were detected. One woman died.

Another CDC advisory meeting on the US drug maker's vaccine is expected in a week.

The agencies advised that "out of an abundance of caution" the roll-out should be paused until its investigations into the blood clot cases are complete.