New Long Term Results Show Pfizer Vaccine Remains Effective After Six Months
Michael Cantrell
|
Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine reportedly remains highly effective after six months, according to results from new long-term testing that the company performed, which could now be used to expand the regulatory status of the vaccine.
Here’s more on this from Newsmax:
Follow-up data from a final-stage trial of 46,307 people showed the vaccine was 91.3% effective in preventing symptomatic cases starting one week after the second dose through as long as six months. In the U.S. alone, the efficacy rate was 92.6%, according to a report Thursday by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech SE.
At the same time, the companies provided some of the first data on how their vaccine might handle the immune-evading B.1.351 variant that arose in South Africa. Nine of 800 trial participants in that country got sick with Covid, including six infected with B.1.351. However, all were in the placebo group, suggesting the shot retains efficacy against the variant.
Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s Chief Executive Officer, said in the statement that the results “position us to submit a Biologics License Application to the U.S. FDA.”
The vaccine has already secured an emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, which means it’s only in effect until the emergency ends and it can be revoked or changed at any time. Formal approval is for the long term.
The original rate of efficacy for the Pfizer vaccine was 95 percent, so the 91 percent efficacy rate after six months is quite impressive. According to results, the vaccine also managed to prevent all or nearly all of the severe cases of the illness over a course of six months.
And apparently there haven’t been any new serious safety concerns identified with the vaccine either.
Wow.
Well, that’s certainly good news for folks taking the vaccine. Let’s hope that there aren’t long term side effects of getting these shots that we haven’t seen yet.
Share: