The coronavirus vaccines prevented 19.8 million deaths from a potential 31.4 million possible victims during the first year, after its introduction in December 2021, according to a study published this Friday.
The study, published in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases, It is based on data from 185 countries and territories collected from December 8, 2020 to December 8, 2021, the AFP agency reported.
The study is the first to attempt to assess the deaths avoided directly or indirectly after the start of the immunization campaign against the coronavirus.
According to their findings, vaccines They prevented 19.8 million deaths out of a total of 31.4 million that would have been recorded had they not been available, what it means a reduction of 63%.
To do this, it uses the official figures of deaths from Covid 19, but also the excess mortality registered in each country or an estimate when official data is not available.
excess mortality corresponds to the difference between the number of deathsregardless of the cause of death, and the number of expected deaths in that period.
These data were compared with an alternative hypothetical scenario in which no vaccine had been administered, added AFP.
The model took into account the differences in vaccination rate between countries, as well as the different efficacy of each of them.
China was not included in the study because, due to its large population and its strict sanitary measures, it would have biased the results, said those responsible for the study.
The work published in The Lancet indicates that most deaths averted were in high- and middle-income countries (12.2 million of 19.8 million), which reflects inequalities in access to vaccination around the world.
Nearly 600,000 deaths could have been prevented if it had been reached World Health Organization goal of having vaccinated 40% of the population of each country by the end of 2021Add.
“Millions of lives would probably have been saved by making the vaccines available to people around the world,” said study leader Oliver Watson of Imperial College London.
“We could do more,” he added, always according to AFP.
The coronavirus has officially caused the death of 6.3 million people in the worldaccording to the WHO.
Nevertheless, the real figure, counting direct and indirect victims, may be 15 millionthe UN agency acknowledged last month.
