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BCG Vaccine May Not Protect Against COVID-19: WHO

by Ramya Rachamanti on Apr 14 2020 8:17 PM

BCG Vaccine May Not Protect Against COVID-19: WHO
BCG vaccine may not prevent infection with the novel coronavirus, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The WHO therefore didn’t recommend BCG vaccination for the prevention of COVID-19 in the absence of evidence, according to its daily situation report on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.

"There is experimental evidence from both animal and human studies that the BCG vaccine has non-specific effects on the immune system. These effects have not been well characterized and their clinical relevance remains unknown," WHO stated.

Two clinical trials addressing the question are underway, and WHO will evaluate the evidence when it is available, it noted.

BCG vaccination prevents severe forms of tuberculosis in children and diversion of local supplies may result in an increase of disease and deaths from the tuberculosis, it warned.



Source-IANS


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