(Press-News.org) Toronto, ON, September 11, 2024 — A single dose of the Modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic (MVA-BN) was 58% effective in protecting again mpox infection, according to a new study published in BMJ.
Researchers from ICES, Public Health Ontario, and the MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions at St. Michael’s Hospital of Unity Health Toronto have conducted a target trial emulation to estimate the effectiveness of the mpox vaccine.
During the mpox outbreak in 2022, Ontario, Canada introduced the vaccine as a protective measure for individuals at high risk of exposure to mpox, which disproportionally affected gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men. “The initial vaccination campaign used a single dose to reach as many people at risk as possible,” says lead author Dr. Christine Navarro, a physician with Public Health Ontario.
Using health data to mimic a randomized controlled trial
“We used real-world health data to estimate the vaccine’s effectiveness against mpox infection as rigorously as possible,” says ICES Senior Scientist Dr. Jeff Kwong.
Leveraging Ontario’s health data infrastructure, the study included adult men with a history of being tested for syphilis and a bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the previous year, or who filled a prescription for drugs taken to prevent getting HIV. Eligible men who were vaccinated were matched to unvaccinated men based on age, area of residence, past HIV diagnosis, number of STI diagnoses, and the receipt of any non-MVA-BN vaccine, and the infection rates in the two groups were compared to determine the effectiveness of the vaccine.
Key Findings
The study included a total of 3204 men who received the MVA-BN vaccine and matched them to 3204 unvaccinated men.
During follow-up, 21 mpox infections were diagnosed in the vaccinated group and 50 infections diagnosed in the unvaccinated group.
The estimated vaccine effectiveness for a single dose of MVA-BN against mpox infection was 58%.
“The findings of our study strengthen existing evidence that a single dose of the mpox vaccine is moderately effective against infection,” says senior author Dr. Sharmistha Mishra, an infectious disease physician and scientist with ICES and the MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions at St. Michael’s Hospital. “The vaccine should be made rapidly available and accessible to populations at risk given the ongoing public health emergency.”
The WHO recently declared a second public health emergency over mpox as the virus spreads rapidly across countries in Africa. In the Democratic Republic of Congo alone there have been 18,000 cases of mpox and at least 600 deaths.
The study “Effectiveness of modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic vaccine against mpox infection: target trial emulation” was published in BMJ.
Authors: Navarro C, Lau C, Buchan SA, Burchell AN, Nasreen S, Friedman L, Okpokoro E, Austin PC, Tan DHS, Gubbay JB, Kwong JC, Mishra S.
ICES is an independent, not-for-profit research and analytics institute that uses population-based health information to produce knowledge on a broad range of healthcare issues. ICES leads cutting-edge studies and analyses evaluating healthcare policy, delivery, and population outcomes. Our knowledge is highly regarded in Canada and abroad and is widely used by government, hospitals, planners, and practitioners to make decisions about healthcare delivery and to develop policy. For the latest ICES news, follow us on X, formerly Twitter: @ICESOntario
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Misty Pratt
Senior Communications Associate, ICES
Misty.Pratt@ices.on.ca
END
Single dose of mpox vaccine effective in preventing infection, study finds
2024-09-11
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
One dose of smallpox vaccine moderately effective in preventing mpox infection
2024-09-11
One dose of modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic (MVA-BN) smallpox vaccine is moderately effective in preventing mpox infection and should be made available to communities at risk, finds a study published by The BMJ today.
With mpox infections rising again across the globe, the researchers say these findings “strengthen the evidence that MVA-BN is effective at preventing mpox infection and should be made available and accessible to communities at risk.”
No randomised clinical trials of vaccination against mpox have been conducted. Estimates of the effectiveness of a single dose of vaccination from observational studies range from ...
More than half of UK government nutrition advisors are paid by food companies
2024-09-11
More than half of the experts on the UK government’s nutrition advisory panel have links to the food industry, reveals an investigation by The BMJ today.
At least 11 of the 17 members of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) have conflicts of interest with the likes of Nestle, sugar manufacturer Tate and Lyle, and the world’s largest ice cream producer, Unilever, reports freelance journalist Sophie Borland.
And at least six out of the 11 members of SACN’s Subgroup on Maternal and Child Nutrition have ties to food firms, including baby food manufacturers and formula milk brands.
SACN ...
Shorter-course radiation better option for breast cancer patients than conventional schedule
2024-09-11
Giving higher doses per fraction of radiation therapy over a shorter time after breast cancer surgery significantly reduces the risk of side effects and improves quality of life compared with a conventional schedule, finds a study published by The BMJ today.
Although survival and recurrence rates were similar, this approach, known as hypofractionation, is safer, more convenient for patients, and reduces costs for healthcare systems, and should be the preferred treatment option, say the researchers.
Conventional fractionation radiation therapy has been the standard of care for most patients with breast ...
Obesity treatments being restricted by cash poor local services
2024-09-11
Obesity treatments are being restricted by cash poor local services across England with many patients being denied specialist drugs, surgery and support, an investigation by The BMJ has found.
Patients in nearly half the country can’t get appointments with specialist teams for weight loss support and care, including treatment with drugs such as semaglutide. And in nearly one in five local health areas, patients don’t have access to a bariatric surgery service, reports Elisabeth Mahase.
The government estimates that obesity costs the NHS in England around £6.5bn a year and is the second biggest preventable cause ...
Laughter may be as effective as drops for dry eyes
2024-09-11
Laughter may be as effective as eye drops in improving symptoms of dry eye disease, finds a clinical trial from China published by The BMJ today
The researchers suggest that laughter exercise could be an initial treatment for relieving symptoms of dry eye disease.
Dry eye disease (DED) is a chronic condition estimated to affect around 360 million individuals worldwide. Common symptoms include uncomfortable, red, scratchy or irritated eyes.
Evidence suggests that laughter therapy alleviates depression, anxiety, stress, and chronic pain, while strengthening immune ...
Path to prosperity for planet and people if Earth’s critical resources are better shared: report
2024-09-11
Earth will only remain able to provide even a basic standard of living for everyone in the future if economic systems and technologies are dramatically transformed and critical resources are more fairly used, managed and shared, according to an international research team including scientists from The Australian National University (ANU).
The report, published in The Lancet Planetary Health, outlines how cities and businesses have the power to play a crucial role and become the “stewards” of critical Earth ...
Long-course radiotherapy is better than short-course for organ preservation in rectal cancer
2024-09-11
The COVID-19 pandemic has enabled researchers to show that a long course of radiotherapy given before surgery may be a better treatment for avoiding surgery, preserving the rectum and anus, and preventing regrowth of the primary tumour than a short course of radiotherapy for patients with rectal cancer – a type of bowel cancer. However, the overall survival and survival free of recurrence of the disease remained the same for both treatments.
These findings are from a new study published in ...
Large-scale population analysis confirms reassuring safety profile of tirzepatide
2024-09-11
As more people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are taking medications to help manage blood sugar levels and weight loss, concerns about whether these drugs are safe have emerged. Now real-world evidence from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database reveals a reassuring safety profile for tirzepatide (TZP).
The findings to be presented at this year’s Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Madrid (9-13 Sept), and published in the The Journal of Endocrinological Investigation (link below) reveal that, compared to the widely used class of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs), TZP has similar gastrointestinal ...
Tirzepatide associated with greater weight loss in women than men
2024-09-11
All doses of tirzepatide, a medication approved in the EU to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity, consistently reduced body weight in women and men, but women experienced greater weight loss, according to new post hoc research to be presented at this year’s Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Madrid (9-13 Sept).
The post hoc analysis, which included the four SURMOUNT trials [1], compared tirzepatide with a placebo for up to 72 to 88 weeks in 4,677 adults (2,999 females, 1,678 males) living with obesity, highlighting potential sex differences in the response.
Tirzepatide, a once-weekly glucose-dependent ...
Rapid control of blood sugar levels in women with gestational diabetes can reverse the risk of their children developing obesity, US study finds
2024-09-11
Swiftly achieving glycaemic control after a diagnosis of gestational diabetes can bring the baby’s risk obesity in childhood down to a level similar to that of children whose mothers did not have gestational diabetes, new research being presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Madrid, Spain (9-13 September), has found.
Gestational diabetes, a type of diabetes that can develop during pregnancy, affects 14% of pregnant women globally and is becoming more common, with those who are living with obesity, have a family ...