Health

Putin orders ‘large-scale’ vaccinations to start next week

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — President Vladimir Putin told health officials Wednesday to start widespread vaccinations next week, adding that Russia has produced close to two million doses of its Sputnik V vaccine. The announcement came on the day Britain approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for a rollout starting next week. Last week Russia reported interim test results showing Sputnik V was 95 percent effective, rivalling international competitors for efficacy. Sputnik V — dubbed after the Soviet-era […]

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What is it like to take part in a vaccine trial?

  by Leila MACOR Agence France Presse A key facet of the global mad scramble by Pfizer, Moderna and other pharma groups to develop a viable coronavirus vaccine is the recruitment of tens of thousands of volunteers willing to participate in clinical trials. AFP’s correspondent in Miami, Leila Macor, took part in such a trial organized by US biotech firm Moderna, which announced Monday that its experimental vaccine was nearly 95 percent effective. Why did […]

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Growing antimicrobial resistance as dangerous as pandemic: WHO

by Robin MILLARD Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization warned Friday that growing antimicrobial resistance is every bit as dangerous as the coronavirus pandemic — and threatens to reverse a century of medical progress. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called the issue “one of the greatest health threats of our time”. Resistance is when bugs become immune to existing drugs — antibiotic, antiviral or antifungal treatments — rendering minor injuries […]

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What are clinical trials and how do they work?

  by Ivan Couronne Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — To find out whether experimental Covid-19 vaccines are safe and effective, researchers design clinical trials involving thousands of volunteers, divided into groups that receive either the drug under investigation or a placebo. Data from such trials have shown that two vaccines — one developed by Pfizer and BioNtech, the other by Moderna and the US National Institutes of Health — are about 95 […]

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Can surgical masks be reused?

  PARIS, France (AFP) — Health authorities say the most widespread anti-Covid weapon — surgical masks — must be thrown away after a single use, but environmental concerns are pushing some scientists to question this recommendation. As the coronavirus continues to spread, masks have in many places become mandatory on public transport, in shops and at work. But cost has become an issue, as has the fact so many disposable plastic masks wind up in […]

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In new breakthrough, Moderna’s Covid vaccine nearly 95% effective

  by Issam AHMED Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US biotech firm Moderna on Monday announced its experimental vaccine against Covid-19 was almost 95 percent effective, a result hailed by the country’s top infectious disease scientist as “stunningly impressive.” Moderna’s early results from a clinical trial with more than 30,000 participants marks a second major breakthrough in the quest to end the pandemic. Last week, American pharmaceutical company Pfizer and its German […]

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Sanofi says its vaccine won’t need supercooling

  PARIS, France (AFP) — The coronavirus vaccine being developed by Sanofi won’t need to be super-cooled and a normal refrigerator will suffice, the Paris-based drugmaker’s France chief Olivier Bogillot said Sunday. His comments came days after American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech announced that their vaccine had proven 90 percent effective in preventing Covid-19 infections in ongoing Phase 3 trials involving more than 40,000 people. The companies said they expect to […]

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Frontrunners emerge in race for Covid-19 vaccine

PARIS, France (AFP) — Dozens of companies, from biotech start-ups to Big Pharma, are racing to develop a safe and effective Covid-19 vaccine, both to meet urgent medical need and for the potential payday. Here’s an update on the quest for a magic bullet against the coronavirus that has already killed more than a million people worldwide. How many in the pipeline? The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified 42 “candidate vaccines” at the stage […]

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Covid-19 vaccine ‘best science news’ of 2020

by Nina LARSON Agence France-Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — Data indicating that a vaccine being developed against Covid-19 is highly effective is the “best science news of the year”, a pharmaceutical industry association chief said, voicing hope that other vaccine candidates would show equally good results. “A vaccine that has 90 percent efficacy and is pretty safe, that is a historic breakthrough,” the head of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA), Thomas […]

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Planes, dry ice, pharmacies: the logistical challenges of Covid-19 vaccines

  by Ivan Couronne Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States could be the first country to launch one of the most ambitious vaccine operations in history: distributing and administering up to 600 million doses of a Covid-19 vaccine in just a few months. Massive vaccine campaigns are nothing new — they have been carried out for decades in the fight against the measles and flu, for example. But stamping out […]

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Russia says Sputnik V virus vaccine 92% effective

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine is 92 percent effective according to initial test results, its developers said on Wednesday, as Moscow races against its competitors in the West. The calculations were based on results from 16,000 individuals who received both doses of the vaccine, Russia’s health ministry, the state-run Gamaleya research centre and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said in a statement. “The Sputnik V vaccine had an efficacy rate […]

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US grants emergency approval to Lilly Covid-19 antibodies

  WASHINGTON, United (AFP) — The US Food and Drug Administration on Monday granted emergency approval to a synthetic antibody treatment against Covid-19 developed by Eli Lilly, after the drug was shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization and emergency room visits. Bamlanivimab at a dose of 700 milligrams was authorized for the treatment of mild-to-moderate Covid-19 in adults and children aged 12 years and older who are at high risk for progressing to the […]

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