This is the first scientifically validated proof of the effectiveness of a vaccine in real conditions.
- The Pfizer vaccine reduces symptomatic cases of Covid-19 by 94%, severe cases of the disease by 92% and hospitalizations by 87%.
- The first injection offers 57% effectiveness which rises to 62% for severe cases and climbs to 72% in preventing Covid-19 related deaths.
Large-scale vaccination in Israel achieves results on a very large number of people. This Wednesday, February 24, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicinehas offered “the first peer-reviewed evidence of vaccine efficacy under real-world conditions”, welcomed theAFP Ben Reis, one of the co-authors of this study. The results showed that the Pfizer vaccine is, after the second injection, 94% effective against symptomatic cases.
Very high protection
Studies confirming the effectiveness of the Pfizer vaccine are piling up. After several clinical trials conducted on thousands of people, the strong efficacy of the vaccine has now been confirmed in real conditions on more than 1.2 million people. This result is important since vaccinating so many people involves logistical challenges, given the need to store this serum at very low temperatures, and a greater variety of individuals and behaviors. The data was collected by Clalit Health Services, one of Israel’s largest health organizations, between December 20, 2020 and February 1, 2021.
For this study, 600,000 vaccinated people were compared to 600,000 others who had not received the injection and who had very similar characteristics in terms of sex, age but also comorbidities and place of residence. By comparing the data from the two groups, the researchers found that the Pfizer vaccine reduces symptomatic cases of Covid-19 by 94%, severe cases of the disease by 92% and hospitalizations by 87%. These figures were obtained at least 7 days after the second injection.
A first injection already effective
The first dose already provides initial protection against the virus. “A fairly substantial effect was observed even before the second dose”, indicated Noam Barda, co-author of the study. For symptomatic cases, it offers an efficiency of 57%, which rises to 62% for severe cases and climbs to 72% in preventing Covid-19 related deaths. The efficacy of the Pfizer vaccine has remained consistent across age groups,”including people over the age of 70”, specifies Ben Reis, before adding to have “indications that for people with a lot of (previous) illnesses, the vaccine works slightly less well.”
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