Prognosis
Astra Shot Doesn’t Thwart South Africa Variant in Study Data
- Earlier analysis prompted country to turn to other shots
- Study doesn’t answer whether vaccine prevents severe disease
Photographer: Gen Shkullaku/AFP/Getty Images
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AstraZeneca Plc’s embattled coronavirus vaccine didn’t offer much protection against mild disease caused by the variant that emerged in South Africa in a study that prompted the country to seek other immunizations last month.
The vaccine had an efficacy of just 10% against the variant strain, according to the study published Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. There were no instances of severe disease in either the group that received two injections of the vaccine or the one that got dummy shots.