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On December 21, 2020, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, the first against Covid-19 in the block of 27 countries; authorization that was later replicated in other nations of the planet. Although the West has endorsed more vaccines since then, the drug became the first official resource to mitigate the pandemic, but its efficacy has recently been challenged by the Omicron variant. The world is getting ready for third doses.
One year of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, considered the cornerstone against Covid-19, especially in Europe.
“When I made this announcement last year, I did not expect that a year later we would still be in a pandemic, but as you all know, the situation is still extremely worrying across Europe,” said the director of communications for the European Medicines Agency. (EMA), Marie Agnes Heine, during a press conference this Tuesday, December 21, on the first anniversary of the drug.
The representative of the health agency explained that the situation is largely due to the appearance of new variants such as Delta, of which there are still high transmission rates; in addition to the recent Ómicron, which “has become the dominant one in a growing number of countries.”
However, Heine stressed that now with five vaccines approved in the EU, including Novavax, the world is in a much stronger position to fight the disease, compared to a year ago.
“We are prepared in case there is a need to change or adapt existing vaccines, but regardless of that the priority now is to increase vaccination, boost booster doses and improve supply,” he added.
And it is that at present the community block promotes the third dose of vaccines to mitigate Ómicron, a variant much more contagious than the previous ones.
This measure was taken after studies carried out by the pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and BioNTech and published on December 8, indicated that the new South African variant can be contained with a third dose of the current antidotes, mainly to avoid the development of serious symptoms.
Additionally, the laboratories are working on an adaptation of the drugs to specifically protect against Omicron.
This immunization shot is expected to be ready in March 2022.
The beginnings of vaccination in the EU
On December 21, 2020, the biological developed by the American laboratory Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech was approved by the EMA.
Just a week later, the European Union (EU) launched the immunization campaign that many were waiting for after almost a year of lockdowns, blockades and saturated hospitals. It was a race against the virus that had been a pandemic for months.
The EMA confirmed sufficient “quality, safety and efficacy” to recommend its use throughout the European Union in people over 16 years of age.
The preparation opted for a novel technique, that of messenger RNA. In other words, it supplies part of the genetic code of the virus so that the cells learn to produce its own protein, to generate an immune response.
The United Kingdom was the first country in the world to approve this drug, it did so two weeks earlier, followed by the United States. Russia had launched in August of this year the first vaccine: Sputnik V, but it was not endorsed by the health authorities of the West, considering that it skipped essential steps for its verification.
Pfizer / BioNTech, the first vaccine approved for children against coronavirus
Following the approval of the Pfizer / BioNTech injection in the 27-country bloc, its use expanded to other nations around the world, albeit with an uneven distribution compared to regions such as Latin America, Africa and Asia.
The milestone of immunization against the new coronavirus was reinforced by the approval of other vaccines in the EU: Moderna, on January 6, 2021, Astrazeneca, on January 29, and Janssen, from Johnson & Johnson, on March 11 .
However, the studies endorsed by the health authorities determined a high reliability in the immunity dose provided by Pfizer / BioNTech, which on November 25 officially became the first vaccine approved by the EMA for children, between 5 and 11 years old. .
Since mid-December, countries such as France, Spain and Portugal began the inoculation campaign for minors.
The world remains on the lookout for new vaccine adaptations at a time when the new variant has triggered infections and even forced closures and confinements in places like the Netherlands when Christmas approaches.
The unequal distribution of doses, added to their opposition to vaccinating thousands of citizens, makes it difficult to eradicate the virus.
With Reuters and EFE
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