National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) is studying the effects of mixing COVID-19 vaccines by administering a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine followed by a dose of the Moderna vaccine, it said on Saturday.
The hospital announced the study at a news conference to celebrate the 100,000th dose of COVID-19 vaccine administered at the facility.
More than 100 healthcare professionals and administrative staff have been deployed to vaccinate people, administering about 2,000 doses per day, with a record of 4,056 doses administered in one day, the hospital said.
Photo provided by National Taiwan University Hospital via CNA
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices on Sunday last week approved a mix-and-match approach to COVID-19 vaccines, with a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine and a second dose of a messenger ribonucleic acid vaccine, such as the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine.
Regarding the hospital’s research on mixing vaccines, NTUH Family Medicine Department attending physician Chang Hao-hsiang (張皓翔) said that one of its two studies on the practice involve testing the effects of receiving a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine with a second dose of the Moderna vaccine.
The study is being directed by National Taiwan University vice president Chang Shan-chwen (張上淳), who is also convener of the Central Epidemic Command Center’s (CECC) specialist advisory panel.
The study participants are all NTUH staff, who have been divided into four groups of 100 and have already received their first shot — either the AstraZeneca or the Moderna vaccine, Chang Hao-hsiang said.
The groups include people receiving two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, four weeks apart; two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, eight weeks apart; two doses of the Moderna vaccine, eight weeks apart; or a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, followed by a dose of the Moderna vaccine, eight weeks apart, he said.
The neutralizing antibody potency and immunity potency of the participants would be compared, with a preliminary result expected in a few weeks, which would be publicized and provided to the CECC as reference for making vaccine policy on a mix-and-match approach, he said.
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