Project description:ObjectiveThe Pfizer BNT162b2 vaccine showed a reassuring safety profile in clinical trials, but real-world data are scarce. Bell's palsy, herpes zoster, Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and other neurological complaints in proximity to vaccination have received special public attention. We compared their rates among vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals.MethodsIndividuals ≥16 years vaccinated with at least one dose of BNT162b2 were eligible for this historical cohort study in a health maintenance organization insuring 1.2 million citizens. Each vaccinee was matched to a non-vaccinated control by sex, age, population sector (general Jewish, Arab, ultra-orthodox Jewish) and comorbidities. Diagnosis of Covid-19 before or after vaccination was an exclusion criterion. The outcome was a diagnosis of Bell's palsy, GBS, herpes zoster or symptoms of numbness or tingling, coded in the visit diagnosis field using ICD-9 codes. Diagnoses of Bell's palsy and GBS were verified by individual file review.ResultsOf 406 148 individuals vaccinated during the study period, 394 609 (97.2%) were eligible (11 539 excluded). A total of 233 159 (59.1%) were matched with unvaccinated controls. Mean follow was 43 ± 15.14 days. In vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals there were 23 versus 24 cases of Bell's palsy (RR 0.96, CI 0.54-1.70), one versus zero cases of GBS, 151 versus 141 cases of herpes zoster (RR 1.07, CI 0.85-1.35) and 605 versus 497 cases of numbness or tingling (RR 1.22, CI 1.08-1.37), respectively.DiscussionNo association was found between vaccination, Bell's palsy, herpes zoster or GBS. Symptoms of numbness or tingling were more common among vaccinees. This study adds reassuring data regarding the safety of the BNT162b2 vaccine.
Project description:ObjectiveTo systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines currently undergoing clinical trials.MethodsPubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases were searched to collect open human COVID-19 vaccines randomized controlled trials, without limiting the search time and language. The research papers collected in the above-mentioned databases were initially screened according to the title and abstract content and merged, and the repeated ones were removed. After reading the full text of the remaining research, the studies that did not meet the inclusion criteria were excluded, and finally, nine studies were obtained. After extracting the statistical data of adverse events in the study, load them into Review Manager for heterogeneity analysis.ResultsThe incidence of adverse reactions of inactivated virus vaccines, RNA vaccines, and adenovirus vector vaccines was higher than that of placebo. Common adverse reactions included pain, swelling, and fever at the injection site.ConclusionFrom the perspective of effectiveness, RNA vaccine > adenovirus vector vaccine > inactivated virus vaccine. From the perspective of safety, the incidence of adverse reactions of the three vaccines is higher than that of a placebo, and the incidence of adverse reactions of the adenovirus vector vaccine is higher.
Project description:(1) Background: Evidence on the outcomes of ustekinumab treatment in real-world Crohn's disease (CD) patients is needed. Our aim was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of ustekinumab in CD, reported by observational studies. (2) Methods: bibliographical searches were performed (PubMed, EMBASE).Selectionobservational studies assessing the effectiveness and safety of ustekinumab in CD.Exclusion criteriastudies using ustekinumab as a prophylaxis for postoperative recurrence or perianal disease.Data synthesiseffectiveness by intention-to-treat (random-effects model). Data were stratified by study design, population included, administered dose, and prior biologic exposure. (3) Results: A total of 63 studies (8529 patients) were included. Response was achieved in 60% (95% CI, 54-67%) in the short term (8-14 weeks); 64% (57-71%) in the medium term (16-24 weeks); and 64% (52-74%) in the long term (48-52 weeks). Remission was achieved in 37% (28-46%) in the short term; 42% (36-49%) in the medium term; and 45% (37-53%) in the long term. The endoscopic remission rate was 33% (25-40%) in the long term. Eighteen percent of patients lost response during follow-up. Nearly one-third of the patients needed dose optimisation, and in 59% of them it was effective. Twenty-five percent of patients developed adverse events, leading to treatment withdrawal in seven percent of the cases. (4) Conclusions: Ustekinumab is an effective and safe therapy in real-world refractory CD patients. Dose optimisation is frequently required, being effective in a high percentage of cases.
Project description:BackgroundSelective patient recruitment can produce discrepancies between clinical trial results and real-world effectiveness.MethodsA systematic literature review and meta-analysis were conducted to assess vedolizumab real-world effectiveness and safety in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn's disease (CD). MEDLINE, MEDLINE In-Process, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases were searched for real-world studies of vedolizumab in adult patients with UC/CD reporting clinical response, remission, corticosteroid-free remission, UC/CD-related surgery or hospitalization, mucosal healing, or safety published from May 1, 2014-June 22, 2017. Response and remission rates were combined in random-effects meta-analyses.ResultsAt treatment week 14, 32% of UC patients [95% confidence interval (CI) 27-39%] and 30% of CD patients (95% CI 25-34%) were in remission; and at month 12, 46% for UC (95% CI 37-56%) and 30% for CD (95% CI 20-42%). For UC, the rates of corticosteroid-free remission were 26% at week 14 (95% CI 20-34%) and 42% at month 12 (95% CI 31-53%); for CD they were 25% at week 14 (95%, CI 20-31%) and 31% at month 12 (95%, CI 20-45%). At month 12, 33-77% of UC and 6-63% of CD patients had mucosal healing. Nine percent of patients reported serious adverse events.ConclusionsVedolizumab demonstrated real-world effectiveness in patients with moderate-to-severely active UC or CD, with approximately one-half and one-third of patients, respectively, in remission at treatment month 12. These findings are consistent with clinical trial data and support the long-term benefit-risk profile of vedolizumab.
Project description:BACKGROUND:The promise of real-world evidence (RWE) is especially relevant to pediatrics, where medicines prescribed for children are often used without evidence derived from randomized clinical trials. OBJECTIVES:The aim of this systematic review was to describe the state of RWE in pediatrics by identifying observational studies published during 2016 that used RWE to assess medication safety or effectiveness in children. METHODS:An electronic search of PubMed was combined with an extended search of references within systematic reviews and expert suggestions. Studies were included if they reported on an infant or child under 18 years with exposure to medications; assessed safety or effectiveness; specified a comparison or control group, and were published in English in 2016. Data extraction was conducted by one team member using a standardized form and reviewed by a second team member. Study quality was assessed using the GRACE checklist for rating the quality of observational studies. RESULTS:After removing duplicates, 915 citations were screened and 29 studies met the eligibility criteria. Most of the eligible studies relied on primary data collection or chart review at a single institution and did not use the growing number of administrative or electronic health record databases available. One-quarter of the studies did not use well-established statistical methods to control for confounders. No single disease group or medication predominated, and age groups ranged from infants to adolescents. CONCLUSIONS:A small body of observational studies published in 2016 were categorized by the study team as using real-world data to assess medication safety or effectiveness in children. Studies varied in age groups, diseases or conditions, and methods, and may not have fully met the FDA definition of RWE. Our review indicates that the use of RWE is not fully developed in pediatrics, and suggests an opportunity to further develop capabilities and more fully leverage administrative and electronic health record databases to study medication safety and effectiveness in children. Our systematic review appears generalizable to pediatrics broadly, and documents that the high level of activity in RWE in general has had less of an impact on pediatrics.
Project description:Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has ravaged the world since December 2019. Up to now, it is still prevalent around the world. Vaccines are an important means to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and reduce severe disease and mortality. Currently, different types of novel coronavirus vaccines are still being developed and improved, and the relevant vaccines that have been approved for marketing have been widely vaccinated around the world. As vaccination coverage continues to grow, concerns about the efficacy and safety of vaccines after real-world use have grown. Some clinical studies have shown that vaccine effectiveness is closely related to antibody response after vaccination. Among them, the advantages of COVID-19 messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine, such as better adaptability to variant strains and better immune response ability, have attracted great attention. However, different populations with different genders, ages, previous COVID-19 infection history, underlying diseases and treatments will show different antibody responses after mRNA vaccination, which will affect the protection of the vaccine. Based on this, this paper reviews the reports related severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 mRNA vaccines, and summarizes the effectiveness of vaccines in different populations and different disease states and looked forward to the precise vaccination strategy of the vaccine in the future.
Project description:UnlabelledHerpes zoster (HZ) is a common, painful and debilitating disease caused by the reactivation of latent varicella-zoster virus in ganglia. This clinical event occurs more frequently in the elderly and those who are immunocompromised. The most common complication of HZ is post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) which is responsible for the highest HZ-related burden of illness and is challenging to treat. Due to the important clinical and economic impact of HZ and PHN, and the suboptimal treatments that are currently available, HZ vaccination is an important approach to reduce the burden of illness. Currently, one-dose, live-attenuated vaccine is licensed in the United States and Europe to prevent HZ and it is included in some national immunization programs. The clinical efficacy, safety and tolerability of the vaccine has been demonstrated in two large phase III clinical trials, involving more than 38,000 and 22,000 individuals aged ≥60 and 50-59 years, respectively. This comprehensive review summarizes the extensive "real-world" effectiveness and safety data from both immunocompetent and immunocompromised individuals. These data confirm those from the clinical trials, supporting the use of HZ vaccine in clinical practice and provide evidence that the current recommendations for immunocompromised individuals should be revised.FundingFunding for the editorial assistance, article processing charges, and open access fee for this publication was provided by Sanofi Pasteur MSD.
Project description:BackgroundDose fractionation of a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine could effectively accelerate global vaccine coverage, while supporting evidence of efficacy, immunogenicity, and safety are unavailable, especially with emerging variants.MethodsWe systematically reviewed clinical trials that reported dose-finding results and estimated the dose-response relationship of neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) of COVID-19 vaccines using a generalized additive model. We predicted the vaccine efficacy against both ancestral and variants, using previously reported correlates of protection and cross-reactivity. We also reviewed and compared seroconversion to nAbs, T cell responses, and safety profiles between fractional and standard dose groups.ResultsWe found that dose fractionation of mRNA and protein subunit vaccines could induce SARS-CoV-2-specific nAbs and T cells that confer a reasonable level of protection (i.e., vaccine efficacy > 50%) against ancestral strains and variants up to Omicron. Safety profiles of fractional doses were non-inferior to the standard dose.ConclusionsDose fractionation of mRNA and protein subunit vaccines may be safe and effective, which would also vary depending on the characteristics of emerging variants and updated vaccine formulations.
Project description:Since the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 at the end of 2019, 64 candidate vaccines are in clinical development and 173 are in the pre-clinical phase. Five types of vaccines are currently approved for emergency use in many countries (Inactivated, Sinopharm; Viral-vector, Astrazeneca, and Gamaleya Research Institute; mRNA, Moderna, and BioNTech/Pfizer). The main challenge in this pandemic was the availability to produce an effective vaccine to be distributed to the world's population in a short time. Herein, we developed a whole virus NRC-VACC-01 inactivated candidate SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and tested its safety and immunogenicity in laboratory animals. In the preclinical studies, we used four experimental animals (mice, rats, guinea pigs, and hamsters). Antibodies were detected as of week three post vaccination and continued up to week ten in the four experimental models. Safety evaluation of NRC-VACC-01 inactivated candidate vaccine in rats revealed that the vaccine was highly tolerable. By studying the effect of booster dose in the immunological profile of vaccinated mice, we observed an increase in neutralizing antibody titers after the booster shot, thus a booster dose was highly recommended after week three or four. Challenge infection of hamsters showed that the vaccinated group had lower morbidity and shedding than the control group. A phase I clinical trial will be performed to assess safety in human subjects.
Project description:BackgroundRivaroxaban and apixaban are the most widely used nonvitamin K oral anticoagulants (NOACs) in patients with venous thromboembolism (VTE). This meta-analysis evaluates the effectiveness and safety of both NOACs versus standard of care (SoC) in real-world practice.MethodsReal-world evidence (RWE) studies were identified through a systematic literature review conducted between January 2012 and July 2020, using Embase, MEDLINE, and the websites of cardiological, hematological, and oncological associations. Eligible RWE studies recruited adult patients with deep vein thrombosis and/or pulmonary embolism and presented a comparison between rivaroxaban and apixaban versus SoC, consisting either of vitamin K antagonists, heparins, or combinations thereof. Hazard ratios (HRs) for the comparison between NOACs and SoC were extracted from the relevant studies or estimated based on the reported binary data. The between-treatment contrasts were reported as HRs with associated 95% confidence intervals.ResultsA total of 65 RWE studies were identified and considered relevant for the meta-analysis. Compared with SoC, both rivaroxaban and apixaban were associated with reduced risks of recurrent VTE and a lower rate of major bleeding events. Patients treated with rivaroxaban were at a lower risk of all-cause death compared with those receiving SoC (HR = 0.56 [0.39-0.80]), while evidence for apixaban from the identified studies was insufficient to demonstrate a statistically significant change in mortality (HR = 0.66 [0.30-1.47]).ConclusionThis analysis indicates that in real-world practice, rivaroxaban and apixaban are associated with a lower risk of recurrent VTE and major bleeding events compared with SoC. Survival benefit in patients treated with rivaroxaban was also observed.