Proposal to conduct study on mixing of Covaxin and Covishield approved by DCGI
ICMR said that the study conducted on 18 people by combining the 2 vaccines has given good results.
SEC had recommended conducting this study on July 29.
On 29th July, Subject Expert Committee of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) had recommended a study on the effect of combination of Covishield and Covaxin vaccines. The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has given a nod for the research study which will be conducted by Christian Medical College, Vellore.
This proposed study would be different from the recent study conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on a group of vaccine recipients who were accidentally given doses of different Covid-19 vaccines in Uttar Pradesh earlier this year.
Prior to this, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) had revealed that the trials of combination of the 2 vaccines Covaxin and Covishield that were conducted on 18 people had yielded better immunogenicity and safety results.
Including these 18 people who had been administered one dose of Covishield and 2nd dose of Covaxin, 40 others were administered 2 doses of Covishield and 40 with Covishield. In the study, people who received both showed better results.
Experts see combining two different vaccines as a way to tackle vaccine shortage, though they also warn that more studies are needed to reach a definitive conclusion to determine the efficacy of this method in preventing Covid-19.
(sources:ht, toi, in)