COVID-19 vaccines that do not require a needle may be available later this year or next year, a senior scientist said.
Six to eight new vaccines may be ready for review of regulations by the end of the year, some of which do not require needles and can be stored at room temperature, said Soumya Swaminathan, chief scientist of the Organization. World Health Weekend, Bloomberg News.
Experimental vaccines in production use alternative technologies and delivery systems, including oral and nasal administration, and skin blemishes, methods more appropriate for some groups such as pregnant women, Swaminathan said.
Promising inoculations are among more than 80 candidate vaccines studied, some of which are in the early stages and may fail, Bloomberg reports.
Only 122 of the 195 countries in the world have begun vaccinating citizens against COVID-19, while drug manufacturers are struggling to fulfill orders, according to Bloomberg.
“We are thrilled with the vaccines we have,” Swaminathan said. But “we can improve even more,” he said, according to the report. “I think that well into 2022, we will see the emergence of improved vaccines.”
Current manufacturers are also testing updated versions of their features to deal with dangerous variants of the virus, which have proliferated in recent months.
The WHO is reviewing whether COVID-19 survivors only need one vaccine, which could release more supplies.
Swaminathan has warned that a single approach could complicate things in many countries. however, if blood tests are needed to measure antibodies first, according to Bloomberg.
According to the report, scientists are also replacing placebos with “gold standard” vaccines for ethical reasons. Another approach under review is to compare three or four candidate drugs with a placebo, meaning that patients would only have a 20% chance of receiving a false dose.
“We are now in discussions with several companies with vaccines in development to see if we could launch something like this on a global testing platform,” Swaminathan said.
The top scientist reiterated on Monday that there have been no documented deaths related to COVID-19 vaccines.
Several countries have suspended shooting AstraZeneca to study its possible negative side effects, but Swaminathan said, “We don’t want people to panic.”
With publishing cables