AstraZeneca may have used outdated information in trial, US health officials allege
…As Nigeria vaccinates 215,277 eligible persons
By Sola Ogundipe & Chioma Obinna
Results from a US trial of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine may have included “outdated information” and that could mean the company provided an incomplete view of efficacy data, American federal health officials have stated.
This development came as 215,277 eligible Nigerians were vaccinated with with the 1st dose of the vaccine.
AstraZeneca reported Monday that its Covid-19 vaccine provided strong protection among adults of all ages in a long-anticipated US study.
In the study of more than 30,000 people, the company reported that the vaccine was found to be 79 percent effective at preventing symptomatic cases of Covid-19 — including in older adults.
There were no severe illnesses or hospitalisations among vaccinated volunteers, compared with five such cases in participants who received dummy shots — a small number, but consistent with findings from Britain and other countries that the vaccine protects against the worst of the disease.
AstraZeneca also said the study’s independent safety monitors found no serious side effects, including no increased risk of rare blood clots like those identified in Europe, a scare that led numerous countries to briefly suspend vaccinations last week.
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But just hours after those encouraging results were reported, the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases issued an unusual statement.
The agency said the Data and Safety Monitoring Board “expressed concern that AstraZeneca may have included outdated information from that trial, which may have provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data.”
“We urge the company to work with the DSMB to review the efficacy data and ensure the most accurate, up-to-date efficacy data be made public as quickly as possible,” the statement added.
Nigeria vaccinates 215,277 persons
The National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, NPHCDA, Tuesday said it has vaccinated a total of 215,277 eligible Nigerians with the first dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine as of 23rd of March 2021.
In an Electronic Management of Immunisation Data (EMID) System made available to Vanguard, Lagos is still topping the list with a total of 58,461 persons, (11.5%). However, seven states are yet to commence COVID-19 vaccination. These states are Abia, Kebbi, Oyo, Zamfara, Niger, Kogi and Taraba. Other states that have made significant progress includes; Bauchi, 23,827, Jigawa, 20,800, Kaduna, 14572, Kwara state, 12, 016 among others.
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