ANKARA
Volunteers for trials of the coronavirus vaccine in Turkey are being closely monitored at every stage, according to authorities.
The phase-3 trials of the Chinese COVID-19 vaccine which began on Sept. 15 are ongoing in two stages.
They include high-risk health care workers and medium-risk volunteers, according to information received by Anadolu Agency.
Vaccines are being administered to volunteers at 25 centers across 12 provinces. A sample of 12,450 will be tested.
The volunteers have been asked to continue wearing masks and maintain social distancing.
A mid evaluation report is prepared after every 500 volunteers are vaccinated.
So far, no significant side effects have been reported. Some of the most common side effects are tiredness, headache, muscle pain and fever.
During the trial, some of the volunteers were given real vaccines and the others were given a placebo.
The volunteers who were given placebo will later be vaccinated.
The side effects of the vaccine are being recorded on daily cards. Anti-body tests were also done to determine if the virus was contracted before the trial began. A PCR test was also done to determine an existing virus.
The second dose of vaccine is given on the 14th day after the first vaccination.
Until day 28, the volunteers will be monitored regularly. After this, they will receive a phone call every week for a year.
People who want to volunteer can apply at https://covid19asi.calismasi.info or call 0850 811 18 80.
The Chinese vaccine can be administered to people aged 18-59.
After a year, regulatory authorities will give a ruling on the vaccine for its commercial use.
So far, Turkey has reported almost 488,000 coronavirus patients, over 13,300 deaths and 396,227 recoveries.
The pandemic has claimed more than 1.45 million lives in 191 countries and regions since last December.
More than 62.37 million cases have been reported worldwide, with nearly 40 million recoveries, according to US-based Johns Hopkins University.
While the US, India, and Brazil remain the worst-hit countries in terms of the number of cases, Europe is in the grip of a large second wave of infections.
*Writing by Gozde Bayar
