CoronaVac, the Chinese vaccine developed by Sinovac, offers 83.5% protection against symptomatic COVID-19, according to interim data from a Phase 3 trial in Turkey published in the Lancet on Friday. Meanwhile, a large study of the efficacy of the vaccine on 10.2 million Chileans found that it was 65.9% effective in preventing infection, 87,5% effective […] Continue reading ->
A “hidden epidemic” of femicides and domestic violence in Brazil has been unearthed by a careful examination of mortality data, a Vital Strategies webinar on women and health was told on Thursday. Fatima Marinho, Principal Technical Advisor in Vital Strategies’ Brazil office, described the mortality findings as “shocking” – but added that they showed how […] Continue reading ->
Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche has suspended its patent rights on the medication tocilizumab in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) for the duration of the pandemic, the company announced Tuesday. This follows the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation on Monday for interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor blockers to be given to patients hospitalised with severe or critical […] Continue reading ->
Levels of neutralizing antibodies in vaccinated individuals is a strong indicator of COVID-19 vaccine success- and this knowledge could be used to jump-start vaccine approvals and mass administration – even before large Phase 3 clinical trials are completed, suggests a new study by the University of Oxford Vaccine Group, Public Health England, and AstraZeneca. Knowledge […] Continue reading ->
The Swiss-based journal Vaccines has retracted a controversial paper linking deaths to COVID-19 vaccines, which prompted the resignation of six members of its editorial board last week. The paper was titled ‘The Safety of COVID-19 Vaccinations – We Should Rethink the Policy’, and it attracted massive support from anti-vaxxers who question the safety of vaccines. […] Continue reading ->
The Biden administration has been asked to clarify that sanctions against Cuba would not extend to collaborations in the development, manufacturing, distribution and sale of COVID-19 vaccines that the island nation is in the process of developing. A memorandum, sent by Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) on 28 June to the White House, asks the US […] Continue reading ->
The use of antibiotics in farming has decreased sharply in Europe, and antibiotic consumption in livestock is now proportionally lower than in humans, a new report by three European Union agencies has found. The report, published by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention […] Continue reading ->
Evidence of the existence of malaria in China has been found carved into bones from the Shang Yin era estimated to be 3000 years old – yet on Wednesday, the country beat this thousands-year-old scourge by getting certified “malaria-free” by the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said China’s success was […] Continue reading ->
After a rocky second wave with COVID-19, Switzerland has turned a corner and is witnessing a decline in cases and deaths and the easing of restrictions, opening the country for tourism and large events. Switzerland has been praised for its response early in COVID-19 and for its economic policy throughout the pandemic. “Switzerland has navigated […] Continue reading ->
Kenya has secured $130 million in funding from the World Bank to buy COVID-19 vaccines and help boost the country’s vaccination drive, the Bank announced on Tuesday. The funding comes as the Kenyan government starts to administer the second dose of AstraZeneca vaccines to citizens, amid an upsurge of infections across 13 counties in the […] Continue reading ->