– The NEJM is one of the most prestigious medical research journals worldwide. Their article selection process includes very strict peer review processes that analyze the novelty, relevance and quality of the papers they receive.
– The author responsible for the study from the Ministry of Health is Dr. Rafael Araos, advisor to the Undersecretariat of Public Health, together with other academics and professionals from the Ministry of Health.
The article published today in the renowned scientific journal The New England Journal of Medicine points out in its abstract that mass vaccination campaigns are being carried out in many countries to prevent Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its consequences. It also highlights the urgent need for vaccine efficacy estimates to support decision-making.
The publication includes the conclusions of the investigation of the Ministry of Health “Effectiveness of the CoronaVac vaccine with inactive virus against SARS-CoV-2 in Chile” led by Dr. Rafael Araos, advisor to the Subsecretariat of Public Health of the Ministry of Health. These results were released by MINSAL, last April 16, in a ceremony led by the Minister of Health, Enrique Paris, the undersecretaries of Public Health and Assistance Networks, Paula Daza and Alberto Dougnac, respectively, and the chief of the National Immunization Program (PNI) Cecilia González. Subsequently, two study updates have been submitted, and a new update will be released in 2 weeks.
Rafael Araos said that “this study was possible thanks to the large number of people vaccinated in Chile and the availability of information sources in the country, which allowed the cross-over of data and advanced analysis about the performance of CoronaVac in real life” .
The specialist recognized the importance of this type of publication for the country and the world on the use of this vaccine, noting that “it is always very positive to publish in prestigious international scientific media, because it closes the scientific research process, but this article is even more relevant because it confirms that the vaccination strategy against COVID-19 developed by our country is effective ”.
The investigation covered 10 million 200 thousand people, of which four million were inoculated between February 2 and May 1, 2021 with the Sinovac laboratory vaccine.
The publication in The New England Journal of Medicine shows that the effectiveness of CoronaVac at day 14 after the second dose is 65.9% in preventing the symptoms of COVID-19; 87.5% to prevent hospitalization; 90.3% to prevent admission to the ICU, and 86.3% to prevent death due to COVID-19.
Araos explained that the study established that “if we take the effectiveness of 65.9% to prevent COVID-19, out of 100 people who would have had COVID-19, there will only be 34 cases if all had been vaccinated. Meanwhile, the effectiveness of 86.3% to prevent death due to COVID-19 tells us that of 100 people who have died from the disease, 13 will do so if they all get vaccinated ”.
The Minister of Health, Dr. Enrique Paris, expressed his satisfaction with the publication “I congratulate Dr. Araos and all those who participated in the study ‘Effectiveness of the CoronaVac vaccine with inactive virus against SARS-CoV-2 in Chile’, carried out by the Ministry of health. Without a doubt, this article reinforces the vaccination process that our country has carried out and recognizes the effectiveness of the CoronaVac vaccine ”.
The study co-authors are Alejandro Jara, Ph.D., Eduardo A. Undurraga, Ph.D., Cecilia González, MD, Fabio Paredes, M.Sc., Tomás Fontecilla, M.Sc., Gonzalo Jara, BSE, Alejandra Pizarro, MD, Johanna Acevedo, MS, Katherinne Leo, BSE, Francisco León, MBA, Carlos Sans, BSE, Paulina Leighton, BSE, Pamela Suárez, BSE, and Heriberto García-Escorza, MS
Download the publication here: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2107715?query=featured_home
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