The developer of the Russian vaccine for Covid-19 said that the Sputnik V vaccine shows 92% effectiveness in preventing infections, as the country tries to be at the top of the fight against coronavirus after the release of a competing product by Pfizer.
Preliminary findings from Phase 3 are based on results from 20.000 volunteers who received the first dose, including more than 16.000 who received a second dose, according to developers at the Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology and Russian Direct Investment Fund in an announcement released on Twitter on Wednesday.
The data are based on results collected 21 days after the initial injection and will be published in a medical journal, according to the statement. The 92% efficacy rate was based on 20 confirmed cases of Covid-19 divided into vaccinated subjects receiving two doses and those receiving placebo. No unexpected side effects have been reported and the monitoring of the volunteers continues, the project's supporters said. The test will involve a total of 40.000 people - not all of them have been vaccinated yet.
Doses have also been given to health care workers, teachers and non-health care workers. tests, with preliminary observations showing that the effectiveness is over 90%, the Department of Health said hours after Pfizer announced this week.
Russia, which is said to be the first in the world to take an active part in the battle since launching Sputnik V in August, has been widely criticized by scientists and pharmaceutical companies, which say more tests are needed to prove that the vaccine is safe and effective.
The Pfizer vaccine is at least 90% effective, according to an interim analysis published this week with the percentage being really encouraging.
With the fifth highest number of Covid-19 cases in the world, Russia also hopes to gain a share of the world market with its vaccine being a control tool for pandemic which has killed more than 1,2 million people worldwide.
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