As the pandemic caused by coronavirus keeps on spreading across the world and that a second wave is expected in Europe, the creation of an effective vaccine against covid 19 is one of the greatest hopes to accelerate the end of the epidemic. Even though Pfizer and BioNTech announced a 90% effective vaccine, issuing a vaccine does not happen in two shakes of a lamb's tail.
But how does it happen then? We shall know that so far, the most advanced vaccines were completing the phase 3 of their clinical trials. This is the step volunteers are randomly scattered in two groups, a standard one, and an experimental one, enabling to compare results between the new treatment studied with a placebo or a medication already usually used to assess the effectiveness.
Phase 3 also enables to confirm the right posology, identify side effects, assess risks and even contraindiction. This step can last between a few months and several years. It is generally reached on the condition the previous steps have delivered promising results.
All right, but what happens next? As said earlier, this is the last stage before issuing a medication. Once it is on the market, phase 4 implies pharmacovigilance. This is all about controlling the drug once issued in order to collect extra data as for the safety of the treatment depending on statements from patients and doctors that prescribed it.
You can read more about the vaccines’ clinical trials here:
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