The Food and Drug Administration is expected to grant an emergency use authorization (US) soon to Johnson & Johnson’s covid-19 vaccine, possibly as early as this weekend. This decision would make it the third vaccine of its kind to be available to Americans. So it’s as good a time as any to go through the similarities and differences between the J&J vaccine and the two already released by Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech.
The most important similarity between all three is its high effectiveness in preventing covid-19 from life-threatening diseases. In an FDA analysis of clinical trial data of about 40,000 volunteers released On Wednesday, the J&J vaccine was found to be 77% effective in preventing serious critical illness 14 days after vaccination and 85% effective in preventing serious critical illness 28 days later. It was generally considered to be 66% effective in preventing moderate to severe disease for 14 days or more.
The top-line figures are not as impressive as those we saw in clinical trials of mRNA vaccines developed by Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech, both effects above 90% to prevent any symptoms. But the most crucial goal of any vaccine should be to keep people alive and free from serious complications of the target disease, a goal that the J&J version seems to achieve very well. In the clinical trials there was nonerelated hospitalizations or deaths observed in vaccinated persons after 28 days. None of these vaccines are likely to be 100% effective in prevention hospitalizations or deaths, but will greatly reduce the chances of it occurring.
The J&J vaccine has its own clear advantages. That is, it is only one shot, unlike the two-month program recommended for one month for any of the mRNA vaccines. There are ongoing research tests if a second shot, taken two months later, could increase its effectiveness. But for now, it’s the only version people will first have access to, assuming it’s FDA-approved. It is also more stable and durable at warmer temperatures, which means it can be stored in a typical refrigerator for longer and without the immediate worry of deteriorating once removed. (That said, Modern and even the Pfizer vaccine don’t seem to need ultra-cold storage as originally thought).
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If you’re concerned about the novelty of mRNA technology behind other vaccines (which, of course, is really three decades old), the J&J vaccine can make you feel more comfortable with your familiarity. It works through a file castrated adenovirus (i.e., it cannot be made more normal) to transport the DNA of the coronavirus’s leading protein, the key that the virus uses to invade cells. The dummy virus enters a cell and asks the body to order a specific immune response for the ear protein, which should train it against reality.
The use of viral vectors as a delivery system in medicine is older than the mRNA method and has a longer safety history. Although, like mRNA vaccines, this would be the first widely used adenovirus-based vaccine. Adenovirus vaccines do have them potential limitations, such as pre-existing immunity to the virus used which could weaken the effectiveness of the vaccine. In the case of the J&J vaccine, a type of adenovirus is used that infects people less frequently, which aims to address these limitations. And since it has been tested in different parts of the world, with similar success, this should alleviate concerns that its effectiveness will vary greatly from country to country.
The J&J vaccine may gain slightly when it comes to potential side effects. The most common vaccine-related adverse events were injection site pain (48.6%), headache (38.9%), fatigue (38.2%), and myalgia (33.2%). In contrast, more than 84% of people who received the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine experienced pain at the injection site after the first or second shot, and 60% experienced fatigue. Potentially serious adverse events were rare for the J&J vaccine and there were no differences in frequency between people who received the vaccine or placebo, after considering possible covid-19 symptoms (0.4% in each group). ), which should indicate your safety.
As with other vaccines, people under the age of 60 were more likely to experience any symptoms, which is probably due to a stronger immune response. There was a possible, albeit rare, risk of an allergic reaction to the vaccine, but only five patients in the study who received the vaccine had any reaction shortly after the start and none experienced a known severe reaction. with anaphylaxis. (One patient in the placebo group had a reaction.)
In its review, the FDA stated that more data should be collected before it is known whether the allergic reaction is a real risk of the vaccine. But otherwise, he approved the vaccine as safe and effective, stating that its analysis “supported a favorable safety profile without identifying specific safety issues that would prevent the issuance of a US.”
Another consideration is that the J&J vaccine was tested in the US, South America and South Africa, at a time when important new variants of the coronavirus have begun to appear. The data suggest that the vaccine should provide good protection, albeit slightly diminished, against the variant found in South Africa, probably the most troubling variant of all. And it can also offer some protection against asymptomatic infections, which is a great sign that it will reduce transmission.
On Thursday, the FDA Advisory Committee on Vaccines and Related Biological Products will meet to discuss trial data and provide its recommendation for obtaining an emergency use authorization or not. And if things go as expected, the FDA will authorize it soon after. Once authorized, J&J has done so dit they will be ready to ship almost 4 million doses immediately. By the end of March, it is said to have 20 million doses available, a timeline similar to the distribution planned by Moderna / Pfizer. By then, all three companies already had it committed to make available to the public 240 million more doses in total. Currently, there are an average of 1.4 million Americans a day vaccinated.
In short, the path to mass vaccination is likely to become less bumpy over time, especially if it is so. other candidates enter the image later this year as expected. And you shouldn’t worry too much about what specific vaccine you’ll get when you finally have to meet the requirements, as they will all protect you from the worst that covid-19 can do (although the J&J vaccine may be the most convenient for to some). More importantly, they will all help end this pandemic as soon as possible.