COVAXIN Final Phase Clinical Trials Begin At NIMS

HYDERABAD: The clinical trials of India's first Coronavirus vaccine COVAXIN being conducted at Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) have reached the final phase. As part of COVAXIN clinical trials, NIMS in Hyderabad has administered the dose of vaccine to 11 volunteers on Tuesday, August 11 and 10 volunteers on Wednesday, August 12.

NIMS doctors said the condition of volunteers who were administered with the drug in two phases was stable and COVAXIN is said to have given better results. Doctors said that in the first phase, COVAXIN zero dose was given to 50 volunteers and the health condition of all of them is said to be stable.

Health condition of volunteers were monitored for 14 days from the date of the first dose, and those who had completed their 14 days from the date of the first dose were selected for the booster dose, doctors said. Those who were administered with the booster dose will be in the observation of the doctors for 24 hours, later they will be sent to homes. NIMS management said that seven persons were administered with the booster dose in the second phase.

Doctors said that volunteers administered with the booster dose are being monitored overf phone and video calls twice a day. The health condition of volunteers who were injected with the COVAXIN is stable.

COVAXIN medicine is being developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research(ICMR) in partnership with Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL). Along with NIMS, the ICMR has chosen 12 other healthcare institutions located in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, New Delhi, Rohtak, Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh), Patna, Belgaum (Karnataka), Nagpur, Kattankulathur (Tamil Nadu), Gorakhpur Goa and Arya Nagar.