The mass immunization campaign is nearing its conclusion, and the question of whether Russian vaccine – Sputnik V, EpiVacCorona, or CoviVac – is the most successful remains.
Both the Health Ministry and the sanitary watchdog emphasized that vaccination protects against all strains of the virus, including the Delta form, although no exact statistics were supplied. However, many stories have surfaced in recent days that allow for a comparison of the three vaccinations, Rossiyskaya Gazeta writes.
First, the Vector Center revealed that just slightly more than 0.5 percent of over a million individuals vaccinated with EpiVacCorona were ill with COVID-19. The data was then made public by St. Petersburg’s health department. Out of 860,000 persons who were completely immunized, 14,600 acquired COVID-19, accounting for 1.7 percent, whereas 1.64 percent of those immunized with Sputnik V became ill.
After receiving both components of EpiVacCorona, slightly more than 6% were ill, and 0.89 percent became infected with the coronavirus after receiving CoviVac.
Later, the Vector Center, which monitors data from all areas of Russia, announced that the proportion of people who became ill 21 days after receiving a second dose of a vaccine is 0.66 percent for Sputnik V, 0.59 percent for EpiVacCorona, and 0.27 percent for CoviVac. The proportion of individuals who became ill among those who received at least one dose of a vaccine is 0.79 percent for Sputnik V, 1.3 percent for EpiVacCorona, and CoviVac’s share is 3%.
In answer to a query about why the figures differ and if it is feasible to determine whether vaccination is more effective, according to Alexei Paramonov, head of the Rassvet clinic where clinical trials of tests are done and vaccination trials are planned, the indicator of vaccine efficacy and safety is determined based on Phase Three clinical studies. Currently, all developers are participating in these trials.
“Such studies follow a tight procedure, they should be randomized to avoid systematic error, they are done over a long period of time, and they involve big groups of individuals,” the expert added.
