ILOILO – This province has been chosen one of the 13 sites in the Philippines for Phase 3 clinical trial of a China-made nasal spray vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
The clinical trial will determine the efficacy and safety of this vaccine, according to Dr. Louie Tirador, principal investigator of the clinical trial.
Unlike vaccines delivered via intramuscular injection, there won’t be pain administering this nasal spray vaccine through the nose, Tirador said.
Its effect would most likely be faster, too, he added.
According to researchers, a nasal spray vaccine might be the most effective way to fight COVID-19; the virus usually enters the human body in the nasal passage, and a spray would directly attack the “invader” there.
“Usually ang vaccine, it will take about two weeks kag makahambal ka nga effective ‘na sia, pero diri ‘ya as early as seven days, testingan na nila kon effective na sia,” said Tirador.
Tirador said there are 40,000 target population worldwide for the Phase 3 clinical trial. In the Philippines, the target is around 10,000 to 15,000 or 500 to 1,000 per site.
Participants must be at least 18 years old.
Half of the targets are those who have not contracted COVID-19 and not yet vaccinated, while the other half are individuals already vaccinated against COVID-19.
According to Tirador, 11 companies worldwide conduct clinical trials involving nasal spray vaccine – four from the United States, four from China, two from India, one from Brazil, and one from Mexico.
Also, seven of the 100 COVID-19 vaccines on clinical trials in the world are nasal sprays./PN
