Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine is about as effective in real world use as it was in clinical trials, according to a study that took place in Israel and was published Feb. 24 in The New England Journal of Medicine.
The study was conducted by Clalit Research Institute in Israel and experts from Harvard University and Boston Children's Hospital, and took place from Dec. 20, 2020, to Feb. 1, The New York Times reported. It's the first large-scale, peer-reviewed study of the vaccine's performance in real world use.
The study showed Pfizer's vaccine reduced symptomatic COVID-19 cases by 94 percent a week after the second dose, and reduced severe disease by 92 percent. It included more than a million people ages 16 and older, with roughly 600,000 people receiving the vaccine and the rest in a control group, the Times reported.
The vaccine was 46 percent effective at preventing COVID-19 infection 14 to 20 days after the first dose and 92 percent effective seven days after the second dose, according to the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. A single dose was 74 percent effective against COVID-19 hospitalization, and 72 percent effective at preventing death.
The study also included about 22,000 people ages 80 and above who received the vaccine. It found that there was no reduction in the vaccine's efficacy among older people.
The study also indicated that the vaccine is effective against B.1.1.7, the virus variant first detected in the U.K., the Times reported.
Read the full article here.
More articles on pharmacy:
Pfizer expecting OK to store vaccines at higher temperature, New York Times reports
CVS expands COVID-19 vaccinations to 17 states
White House again increases weekly vaccine doses sent to states