HAVANA, Cuba, Mon. Aug. 9, 2021– Finlay Institute, the Cuban manufacturer of the Soberna 02 vaccine, has announced that it will be extending vaccine trials to minors aged 3 and over.
The decision to include this age group was made after trials verified the safety of the first shot of the Soberna 02 vaccine on adolescents. These persons were intensively monitored and underwent a continuous medical follow-up for up to a week post-immunization.
Adolescents involved in the Soberna 02 trials will require a third dose of the Soberna Plus vaccine to supplement the prior two. After this third dose has been administered, 25 minors aged 13 to 18 will complete their immunization, thus allowing the efficacy of the virus among adolescents to be more accurately tested.
In the first week of August, health authorities provided a second dose to over 100 adolescents in the second stage of the Soberna clinical studies. Minors from ages 3 to 11 were included in this second phase as the authorities embarked on the initial stage of clinical studies for that age range.
The Finlay Institute noted that full research data on the trial will be made available in late August. This will guide the implementation of mass vaccinations of this age group.
Cuba has had some successes in the development of its homegrown vaccines. It’s three-shot Abdala vaccine has proven to be 92.28% effective in the most recent trials and its Soberna 02 vaccine has proven to be 62% effective after only 2 of its three necessary doses are administered, and 91% effective, when all three doses have been received in adults.
As it stands, Cuba now has 5 vaccine contenders in its arsenal. Despite this, none of its vaccines have been granted emergency use authorization by local regulators, but both Abdala and Soberna 02 are expected to be granted emergency authorization in the near future.
Cuba’s decision to opt out of importing foreign vaccines has many implications. While it boosts Cuba’s scientific reputation as an able vaccine manufacturer, the island now faces its worst COVID-19 outbreak since the start of the pandemic. Cuba has confirmed over 72,000 COVID-19 cases and is recording 1,500 new infections daily.