JERUSALEM (Reuters) – The first major real-world study of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine that was independently reviewed shows that the shot is highly effective in preventing COVID-19, at a potentially historic moment for countries desperate for a want to end lockdowns and reopen economies.
So far, most of the data on the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines under controlled conditions has come in clinical trials, leaving an element of uncertainty about how the results would translate to the real world with its unpredictable variables.
The study in Israel – two months into one of the fastest deployments in the world, providing a rich source of data – showed that two doses of the Pfizer injection reduced symptomatic COVID-19 cases by 94% in all age groups, and serious illnesses with almost the same number.
The study of approximately 1.2 million people also found that a single injection was 57% effective in protecting against symptomatic infections after two weeks, according to data published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine and peer reviewed .
The results of the study for the Clalit Research Institute were close to those in last year’s clinical trials, which found two doses to be 95% effective.
“We were surprised because we expected that in the real world, where the cold chain is not perfectly maintained and the population is older and sicker, you will not get as good results as in the controlled clinical trials,” said senior study author Ran Balicer. to Reuters. “But we did and the vaccine also worked in the real world.”
“We have shown that the vaccine is equally effective in very different subgroups, in the young and the elderly, in people without co-morbidity and in people with little co-morbidity,” he added.
The study also suggests that the vaccine, developed by the US drug company Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, is effective against the coronavirus variant first identified in the UK. Researchers said they couldn’t provide a specific level of efficacy, but the variant was the dominant version of the virus in Israel at the time of the study.
The study has not shed light on how the Pfizer injection will fare against another variant, now dominant in South Africa, which has been shown to reduce the effectiveness of other vaccines.
‘THIS IS MORE GREAT NEWS’
Of the nine million people in Israel, a country with universal health care, nearly half have received a first dose and a third have received both doses since its introduction on December 19.
This made the country an excellent location for a real-world investigation into the vaccine’s ability to stop the pandemic, along with its advanced data capabilities.
The study examined about 600,000 vaccinated people against the same control group of unvaccinated people. Researchers from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, and Boston Children’s Hospital also collaborated.
“This is even more great news, confirming that the vaccine is about 90% effective in preventing documented infection of any severity from 7 days after the second dose,” said Peter English, a UK government adviser in the control of transmissible infections. diseases.
Previously reviewed articles from Israel were observational studies. This one used an experimental design known as a case-control study … which gives more confidence that the differences between the groups are due to their vaccination status, and not some other factor. “
The study published Wednesday was the first analysis of a national COVID-19 vaccination strategy to be peer-reviewed. It also provided a more detailed look at how the vaccine fared at weekly intervals, as people who received the injection were matched with unvaccinated individuals with similar medical history, gender, age, and geographic features.
Other research centers in Israel, including the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Israel Institute of Technology, have shared several studies in recent weeks showing that the vaccine is effective.
At least three studies from Israel have also suggested that the vaccine could reduce coronavirus transmission, but the researchers cautioned that broader studies need to be conducted to draw firm conclusions.
GOT YOUR IMMUNITY PASS?
The latest data from the Weizmann Institute shows that a dramatic decline in the disease – which began this month with the first vaccinated age group, the over-60s – has now extended to the next two groups that received both doses.
As infections have eased in Israel, the country has eased its third national lockdown in the past two weeks and has reopened parts of its economy, including shopping centers, shops, schools and many workplaces.
Recreational locations such as theaters, gyms and hotels are open on Sundays, but are only accessible to those deemed immune – holders of a “Green Pass”, a Ministry of Health document that can only be downloaded by people seven days after their second dose or people recovering from COVID-19.
On Wednesday, Tel Aviv held one of the country’s first live concerts after months of rallies banned under coronavirus restrictions.
“This is so exciting, we are really so happy to be here today. It’s incredible after a year of staying at home, it’s great to see some culture, ”said 60-year-old Gabi Shamir as she took her seat on the open-air show.
Still, the vaccine’s efficacy doesn’t mean the country will be pandemic-free anytime soon. As elsewhere in the world, a large portion of the population is under the age of 16 – about a third in Israel – meaning they cannot be vaccinated yet because there are no clinical trial results for children.
“This is certainly not the end of the pandemic,” said Eran Kopel, an epidemiologist at Tel Aviv University. “Once there is a safe vaccine for the children in Israel and around the world, we can begin to say that we could be approaching the immunity of the herd.”
Additional reporting by Rami Amichay in Tel Aviv and Kate Kelland in London; Written by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Pravin Char