Photographer: Zoltan Mathe / AFP / Getty Images
Photographer: Zoltan Mathe / AFP / Getty Images
The AstraZeneca Plc coronavirus vaccine performed better than expected in a US clinical trial, which ensured its safety and efficacy.
The shot developed with Oxford University was 79% effective in preventing Covid-19, and an independent monitoring board found no safety issues. Said Monday. The shot also protected all those vaccinated against serious illness and death, in a study of more than 30,000 volunteers.
The findings should boost confidence in the product after confusion about its actual effectiveness and the best dose that influenced the survey. The vaccine has faced numerous setbacks, recently due to supply issues and possible side effects. Even after the The European Medicines Agency declared it safe last Thursday, and not all European Union countries have resumed their vaccination over concerns over the reports of blood clots.
“Efficiency is better than we expected,” Peter Welford, an analyst at Jefferies, wrote in a note to clients. “It is important that the study, after recent largely unfounded security issues in Europe, confirms the safety profile.”
Read more: EU regulator considers Astra safe, but recommends warning label
Astra shares rose 1.2% in London.
A shortage of deliveries to the EU has led Astra was in conflict with the bloc and has led officials to oppose the export of the shot from the region while wanting to hold the company accountable.
Read more: Vaccination battle heats up with EU ready to halt UK shipments
Clinical trials in the UK and Brazil yielded a range of readings last year due to different doses and doses used, and at least ten EU countries only approved the survey for those under 65 years of age.
Data confusion
Many have since that decision turned into more data from real world use showed that the vaccine was effective for everyone. Older adults accounted for about one-fifth of the U.S. test, which showed 80% effectiveness in that age group. Trials last year could not provide conclusive information due to a lack of participants older than 65 years.
A number of cases with severe blood clots found in individuals after vaccination also damaged the image of the vaccine. More than a dozen countries the use of the shot was suspended last week on the reports. The European Medicines Agency and the UK regulator said Thursday that there can be no definitive link between the clot and the vaccine, and that the benefits of using it still outweigh the risks. The U.S. trial, which found no safety issues, specifically looked at blood clots.
Skepticism about the vaccine began last year. Toe Astra and Oxford initial data from provincial trials conducted in the UK and Brazil in November last year yielded two different efficiencies of 62% and 90% for the first time. Due to a manufacturing error, one group of participants received a lower first dose that yielded the higher reading compared to those who received two standard doses. Further analysis suggested that the dose gap was rather than the amount that created the difference.
More than 70 countries worldwide have approved the Astra-Oxford survey for use and the partners plan to produce to three billion doses of the vaccine this year.
The vaccine is especially important for the global effort to end the pandemic, as it is easy to store and transport and the company makes no profit during the crisis. Other than vaccines from Pfizer Inc. and partner BioNTech SE, and Moderna Inc., which needs to be kept frozen, can keep the Astra shot at refrigerator temperature.
(Updates to add analysts’ comments in fourth paragraph, shares in fifth)