WHO OKs AstraZeneca jabs for COVID variants, over-65s

The AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine can be used for people aged over 65, and also where coronavirus variants of concern are circulating, WHO experts said on Feb. 10, soothing fears about the jab.

The World Health Organization's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) issued interim recommendations for when and how to use the two-shot vaccine, which has yet to receive WHO emergency use authorization.

The announcement came after the vaccine suffered setbacks, raising questions about whether it should be used on older people, or in places where a variant of the virus first found in South Africa is circulating.

SAGE chief Alejandro Cravioto acknowledged the lack of data on the vaccine's efficacy for people aged over 65, which has prompted a number of countries to withhold recommending its use in older people, who are by far the most vulnerable to the virus.

But the experts concluded that given its performance with younger adults, "it is likely that the vaccine will be found to be efficacious in older persons. The trial data indicate that the vaccine is safe for this age group."

Cravioto told journalists: "We feel that the response of this group cannot be any different from groups of a younger age."

SAGE, he said, recommends it be used "for 18 years and above, without an upper age limit".

Cravioto said the experts were awaiting more specific data on the vaccine's efficacy in people over 65, but said it "would not be appropriate" to wait with its recommendations.

"We have thousands of people dying," he stressed.

"Anything we can do to use a product that might reduce that is totally justified, even if the information is not as complete as we would like."

The experts also said...