(Updates throughout, adding details, quotes, background)
By Stephanie Nebehay, Kate Kelland and John Miller
GENEVA, Feb 10 (Reuters) - AstraZeneca's COVID-19
vaccine is safe and effective and should be deployed widely,
including in countries where the South African variant of the
coronavirus may reduce its efficacy, a World Health Organization
panel said on Wednesday.
In interim recommendations on the shot, the Strategic
Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE) panel said the
vaccine should be given in two doses with an interval of 8 to 12
weeks, and should also be used in people aged 65 and older.
Even in countries such as South Africa, where questions have
been raised about the AstraZeneca vaccine's efficacy against a
newly-emerged variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, "there is
no reason not to recommend its use", SAGE's chair, Alejandro
Cravioto, told a briefing.
"We have made a recommendation that even if there is a
reduction in the possibility of this vaccine having a full
impact in its protection capacity, especially against severe
disease, there is no reason not to recommend its use even in
countries that have circulation of the variant," he said.
South Africa this week paused part of its rollout of the
AstraZeneca vaccine after data from a small trial showed it did
not protect against mild to moderate illness from the 501Y.V2
variant of the coronavirus now dominant in the country.
The WHO said those preliminary findings "highlight the
urgent need for a coordinated approach for surveillance and
evaluation of variants" and their impact on vaccine efficacy.
"The WHO will continue to monitor the situation (and) as new
data become available, recommendations will be updated
accordingly," it said.
(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay and John Miller in GENEVA, and
Kate Kelland in LONDON; Editing by Jon Boyle)
Astrazeneca (AZN)