OXFORD ASTRAZENECA COVID-19 VACCINE CAN BE 90% EFFECTIVE, RESULTS SHOW

Mon 23 November 2020:

A coronavirus vaccine developed in the UK can prevent 70.4% of people from getting Covid-19 and up to 90% if a lower dose is used, according to data.

Oxford University and AstraZeneca have announced their jab is effective in preventing many people getting ill and it has been shown to work in different age groups, including the elderly. There are early indications it might also help stop the spread of the disease.

Another dosing regimen showed 62% efficacy when given as two full doses at least one month apart and the combined analysis from both dosing regimens resulted in an average efficacy of 70%. All results were statistically significant.

No serious safety events related to the vaccine have been confirmed and it was well tolerated across both dosing regimens, it said.

“This vaccine’s efficacy and safety confirm that it will be highly effective against COVID-19 and will have an immediate impact on this public health emergency,” Pascal Soriot, Astra’s chief executive, said in a statement.

Sarah Gilbert, professor of vaccinology at the University of Oxford, said: “The announcement today takes us another step closer to the time when we can use vaccines to bring an end to the devastation caused by [Covid-19].

“We will continue to work to provide the detailed information to regulators. It has been a privilege to be part of this multi-national effort, which will reap benefits for the whole world.”

The data comes after U.S. rivals published interim data in recent weeks showing efficacy of more than 90%.

On Nov. 16, U.S.-based Moderna Inc said its experimental vaccine proved to be 94.5% effective based on an early data analysis.

A week earlier, Pfizer Inc and Germany’s BioNTech SE said their vaccine candidate had demonstrated greater than 90% efficacy that rose to 95% with analysis of full trial data.

Russia’s Sputnik-V vaccine on Nov. 11 was also shown to be more than 90% effective, though only based on 20 infections.

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