Posted on 06/17/2021 11:18:48 AM PDT by Red Badger
With the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines accelerating, people are increasingly asking which vaccine is best?
Even if we tried to answer this question, defining which vaccine is "best" is not simple.
Does that mean the vaccine better at protecting you from serious disease? The one that protects you from whichever variant is circulating near you? The one that needs fewer booster shots? The one for your age group? Or is it another measure entirely?
Even if we could define what's "best", it's not as if you get a choice of vaccine. Until a suite of vaccines become available, the vast majority of people around the world will be vaccinated with whichever vaccine is available.
That's based on available clinical data and health authorities' recommendations, or by what your doctor advises if you have an underlying medical condition. So the candid answer to which COVID vaccine is "best" is simply the one available to you right now.
Still not convinced? Here's why it's so difficult to compare COVID vaccines.
Clinical trial results only go so far You might think clinical trials might provide some answers about which vaccine is "best", particularly the large phase 3 trials used as the basis of approval by regulatory authorities around the world.
These trials, usually in tens of thousands of people, compare the number of COVID-19 cases in people who get the vaccine, versus those who get a placebo. This gives a measure of efficacy, or how well the vaccine works under the tightly controlled conditions of a clinical trial.
And we know the efficacy of different COVID vaccines differ. For instance, we learned from clinical trials that the Pfizer vaccine reported an efficacy of 95 percent in preventing symptoms, whereas AstraZeneca had an efficacy of 62-90 percent, depending on the dosing regime.
But direct comparison of phase 3 trials is complex as they take place at different locations and times. This means rates of infection in the community, public health measures and the mix of distinct viral variants can vary. Trial participants can also differ in age, ethnicity and potential underlying medical conditions.
We might compare vaccines head to head One way we can compare vaccine efficacy directly is to run head-to-head studies. These compare outcomes of people receiving one vaccine with those who receive another, in the same trial.
In these trials, how we measure efficacy, the study population and every other factor is the same. So we know any differences in outcomes must be down to differences between the vaccines.
For instance, a head-to-head trial is under way in the UK to compare the AstraZeneca and Valneva vaccines. The phase 3 trial is expected to be completed later this year.
Late to post, but very excited to be taking part in the Valneva phase 3 vaccine trial! As it's no longer ethical to give anyone placebo, the everyone gets either Valneva or AstraZeneca 🥰 #vaccinated #valneva #clinicaltrial pic.twitter.com/iyhZl8Vt4Y
— Lizzie Wadsworth (@LizzieWadz) May 27, 2021 How about out in the real world? Until we wait for the results of head-to-head studies, there's much we can learn from how vaccines work in the general community, outside clinical trials. Real-world data tells us about vaccine effectiveness (not efficacy).
And the effectiveness of COVID vaccines can be compared in countries that have rolled out different vaccines to the same populations.
For instance, the latest data from the UK show both Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines have similar effectiveness. They both reliably prevent COVID-19 symptoms, hospitalisation and death, even after a single dose.
So what at first glance looks "best" according to efficacy results from clinical trials doesn't always translate to the real world.
What about the future? The COVID vaccine you get today is not likely to be your last. As immunity naturally wanes after immunisation, periodic boosters will become necessary to maintain effective protection.
There is now promising data from Spain that mix-and-matching vaccines is safe and can trigger very potent immune responses. So this may be a viable strategy to maintain high vaccine effectiveness over time.
In other words, the "best" vaccine might in fact be a number of different vaccines.
Variant viruses have started to circulate, and while current vaccines show reduced protection against these variants, they still protect.
Companies, including Moderna, are rapidly updating their vaccines to be administered as variant-specific boosters to combat this.
So, while one vaccine might have a greater efficacy in a phase 3 trial, that vaccine might not necessarily be "best" at protecting against future variants of concern circulating near you.
The best vaccine is the one you can get now It is entirely rational to want the "best" vaccine available. But the best vaccine is the one available to you right now because it stops you from catching COVID-19, reduces transmission to vulnerable members of our community and substantially reduces your risk of severe disease.
All available vaccines do this job and do it well. From a collective perspective, these benefits are compounded. The more people get vaccinated, the more the community becomes immune (also known as herd immunity), further curtailing the spread of COVID-19.
The global pandemic is a highly dynamic situation, with emerging viral variants of concern, uncertain global vaccine supply, patchy governmental action and potential for explosive outbreaks in many regions.
So waiting for the perfect vaccine is an unattainable ambition. Every vaccine delivered is a small but significant step towards global normality. The Conversation
Wen Shi Lee, Postdoctoral researcher, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity and Hyon Xhi Tan, Postdoctoral researcher, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
https://theconversation.com/which-covid-vaccine-is-best-heres-why-thats-really-hard-to-answer-161185
My parents thankfully have listened to me and also have an IQ over 60, so they have not taken anything.
I have some other extended family that did, despite warnings. They want to travel though. Such a shame.
How old was she? Are you even telling the truth? The amount of people that die from this is so small, that if you knew one, you should also play the lottery.
If you indeed are telling the truth, what did she really die from? Did she have health issues etc? There’s lots of questions here.
That was originally "3-6 months" until people pointed out that hundreds of thousands of people had already had the shot that long in clinical trials and were doing just fine. Then it got changed to 1 year. When that passed uneventfully, it became 2-3 years. Now that's we're about 15 months in, some are already looking ahead to say it'll be more like 3-5 years.
Spoiler alert: we're going to be just fine. Fearmongering is just that.
Why the interrogation?
Would you say it’s appropriate to interrogate someone who claims they lost a friend/neighbor/relative because of a vaccine?
There isn’t one.
But we can pretend there is one.
After all, Joe Biden is pretending to be president.
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Well said. The side effects reports ( and deaths by jab) are increasing day by day….fewer people taking the jab but the US and EU Vaers reports are increasing….it doesn’t take a genius to figure out something stinks with the “ vaccines “…..time is beginning to paint an awful picture.
Phase 3 trials LOL
Both Pfizer’s and Moderna’s covid-19 vaccine protocol documents say Phase 1 to run 24 months. Phase 2/3 to run concurrently also for 24 months.
Phase 1 included only healthy people who have not had covid and were between 18-55 years old. There’s almost another year to go in observing Phase 1 trial participants.
We are currently in Phase 2/3. Congratulations citizens for becoming participants in the Phase 2/3 trials.
We thank you for your service and may the odds be forever in your favor.
From the local incidental stories shared among family and co-workers, etc., it did seem that fewer people had problems with the Pfizer. Both my husband and I got Pfizer, and neither of us had any issues whatsoever.
Some people die by smelling a peanut.
Easy.... Covid 19.
You are better off getting it than taking ANY vaccine.
This 15-minute video talks about anecdotal observations being censored and the damage that is causing in determining safety following getting the shots.
One of the 3 on the panel, Dr. Robert Malone, is the INVENTOR of mRNA Vaccine technology.
The 3 are not opposed to vaccines—but have concerns about this one...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Du2wm5nhTXY
You are better off getting it than taking ANY vaccine.
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We each have opinions/choices and many times we will differ.
What’s wrong with the old tried and true dead virus vaccines? Too cheap to be profitable?
We got Johnson because we heard horror stories about Moderna and Pfizer! One shot and not so much as a sore arm!😀
The claim says French virologist Luc Montagnier “has confirmed that there is no chance of survival for people who have received any form of the vaccine”.
It then quotes him as saying: “’There is no hope, and no possible treatment for those who have been vaccinated already. We must be prepared to incinerate the bodies.’” The post adds: “The scientific genius backed claims of other pre eminent [sic] virologists after studying the constituents of the vaccine. ‘They will all die from antibody dependent enhancement.’ Nothing more can be said.’”
Montagnier won the Nobel Prize for medicine in 2008 with fellow scientist Francoise Barre-Sinoussi for their work identifying the HIV virus
>>> We each have opinions/choices and many times we will differ.
Yeah... Until that opinion/choice is taken from you.
So get ready, because the same people who have you convinced it is safe today will be the same ones issuing you a “vaccination verification card” tomorrow.
I choose to depend upon the immune system God gave me.
Not man’s toxic agenda 21 hack job of it.
What good is your opinion when you are dead?
I guess we will just wait to see who survives to find out who’s opinion is “better”.
But it is still my opinion. That is the point. People have
differing opinions and it is their choice. I may differ with
you but I have a right to my opinion just as you do. Right
or wrong isn’t the question.
>>> But it is still my opinion. That is the point.
are you a virologist? Have you been studying this as a virologist all this time in a clinical setting?
Do you have first hand knowledge of what the vaccines are doing to the human body?
No.. most likely you are not, and have not.
Therefore you CANNOT have an opinion.
What you DO have is FAITH in those providing you information and recommendations. It is THEIR OPINION you are relying upon.
You have placed your FAITH in those health care professionals and GOVERNMENT officials promoting the vaccine... as well as globalists like Bill Gates who believe there are TOO MANY MOUTHS to feed on this planet.
I have placed MY FAITH in God, and I believe those health care professionals who are warning us that it is potentially lethal to everyone who takes it.
I can only hope that the fallout will not be as bad as some professionals are predicting.
and even THAT is not my opinion... it is my hope.
Do you have first hand knowledge of what the vaccines are doing to the human body?
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To the extent that I, my wife, daughter and others have been vaccinated and none have had any problems. Long term I don’t
know. Neither does anyone else at the juncture, imo.
I chose Moderna because the storage specs on Pfizer just seemed like it would lead to a lot of spoiled/ineffective batches being given.
You might, and others of you, want to listen to this former scientist, pro vax, that worked at Pfizer many years.
First 27 minutes. Take the time to listen. War Room Ep 1010:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bannons-war-room/id1485351658?i=1000524826328
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