A new investigative report recently released by the Food and Drug Administration has analyzed the efficacy of Johnson & Johson’s coronavirus vaccine and concluded that it can provide significant protection especially against severe forms of the infection.
Although the agency will review data from the vaccine’s clinical trials and results further, the initial reports have raised hopes for approval of a third vaccine in the US.
In fact, the J&J vaccine, also known as the Jansen vaccine, may be able to receive Emergency Use Authorization by the end of this week given that its effectiveness against the virus is over eighty percent.
The approval of a third vaccine can speed up the vaccine distribution process and help achieve widespread immunity in a comparatively shorter period.
In the case of the Jansen vaccine, another advantage is that one dosage is enough for immune response. According to FDA’s report, a single dose of the vaccine provides sixty-six percent protection against severe coronavirus infection within fourteen days.
After twenty-eight days, the percentage increased further to eighty-five percent. Although there was a slight difference in efficacy in people aged sixty and over, the effectiveness was similar among other age groups, ethnicities, and races overall.
Additionally, no concerning side effects were noted in any of the people who received the vaccine. Therefore, it was concluded that there are no possible complications associated with the Jansen vaccination.
The high efficacy rate and easier follow-up of the vaccine also make it less difficult to roll out across the US. Secondly, because only a single dose is required, transport and storage are also less of an issue along with decreased challenges in recording data.
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Another good news regarding the Jansen vaccine is that its effectiveness was almost similar in all regions. This means that can also protect against new variants of the virus, which have been a big concern recently.
According to research, new strains of the virus are associated with a higher hospitalization and death rate in patients with severe coronavirus infection. In addition, some of the currently used vaccines may also not be as effective against such strains.
However, the Jansen vaccine was seen to protect against the virus in several regions including South Africa and Brazil where the new variants emerged from.
In Brazil, the vaccine efficacy was eighty-eight percent while in South African it was eighty-two percent.
Overall, Pfizer and Moderna still have the highest rate of effectiveness against coronavirus infection. This does not mean that these vaccines are better than the J&J vaccine.
All of the currently used vaccines have been tested in different places, times, and circumstances. Therefore, comparing their effectiveness is difficult and is deemed unimportant by scientists.
What is important is that they all provide protection against the infection and can help in ending the coronavirus pandemic. Getting any of the vaccines can cut down hospitalization risk and data.
So, getting any vaccine that is being distributed is recommended rather than requesting a specific one.
