New research led by Irish scientists has uncovered a potential new target for treating a debilitating chronic inflammatory skin condition. Hidradenitis
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Each week on “Simplified”, Dave and Fionnuala aim to give clear explanations of different issues relating to the pandemic.
This week, they have looked at the development and usage of vaccines, with Professor Ed Lavelle, who works in this area, taking the time to answer some questions.
The first question asked was about efficacy. What does efficacy or an efficacy rate of a vaccine actually mean?
“The efficacy rates really derive from the clinical trials that were done. So, efficacy is basically the number of people that would develop symptomatic disease, either in the people that got the placebo or the people that got the vaccine, and you can compare those effects. They will generate those figures like 95% or 70% or 60%.”