Scientists have given the Sputnik V vaccine the green light, saying the Russian vaccine is nearly 92% effective in combating COVID-19.
The conclusions are based on the results of a final stage trial reviewed by experts and published in the international medical journal The Lancet.
Experts say the results of the Phase III trials mean the world has another effective weapon against the deadly epidemic. The test results also indirectly confirm Moscow's decision to release the vaccine before the final data is released.
The results, compiled by the Moscow Aesthetics Institute that developed and tested the vaccine, are consistent with efficacy data reported at an early stage of the trial, which began in Moscow in September.
"The development of the Sputnik V vaccine has been criticized for inappropriate rushing, circumvention, and lack of transparency," said Ian Jones, a professor at the University of Reading, and Paulie Roy, a professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The scientists, who were not involved in the study, said in comments published in The Lancet: "But the results reported here are clear, and the scientific principles of inoculation have been clarified."
Scientists said: "Other vaccines can now join the battle to reduce the incidence of COVID-19."
"The results were based on data from 19,866 volunteers, a quarter of whom received a placebo," said the researchers, led by Denis Luganoff from the Aesthetic Institute in The Lancet.
Since the trials began in Moscow, 16 cases of symptoms of COVID-19 have been recorded among the people who received the vaccine, and 62 among the placebo group, according to the scientists.
This indicates that a two-dose vaccine regimen, delivered on the basis of different viral vectors, given at a 21-day interval, is 91.6% effective against symptoms of COVID-19.
The Sputnik V vaccine is the fourth in the world in which phase 3 results have been published in the leading peer-reviewed medical journals after Pfizer, BioNTech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca.
Pfizer vaccine had the highest efficacy rate of 95%, followed by Moderna and Sputnik V vaccine, while AstraZeneca vaccine had an efficacy rate of 70%.
"Sputnik V has been approved to be stored in a regular fridge, not a fridge, which makes transportation and dispensing easier," said the aesthetic scientist.
Russia approved the vaccine in August before large-scale trials begin. This means that Russia is the first country to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
The vaccine was named Sputnik V in honor of the first satellite in the world launched by the Soviet Union.
A small number of frontline health workers began receiving the vaccine as soon as it began large-scale application in December.
In January, all citizens of Russia were given the vaccine.
