- Novavax (NVAX, Financial) COVID-19 vaccine induces significantly lower reactogenicity compared to Pfizer-BioNTech's mRNA vaccine.
- Novavax recipients reported fewer Grade 2+ symptoms (24.2% vs 43.8%) and reduced work productivity loss (0.8 vs 2.4 hours).
- Results are from a real-world study conducted between September and December 2024 with 219 Novavax and 369 Pfizer-BioNTech participants.
Novavax, Inc. (NVAX) has released preliminary findings from the SHIELD-Utah study, which compared its protein-based COVID-19 vaccine to Pfizer-BioNTech's mRNA vaccine. The real-world study, conducted at the University of Utah Health from September to December 2024, shows that Novavax's vaccine, formulated for 2024-2025 and targeting the JN.1 strain, leads to significantly fewer and less severe reactogenicity symptoms.
Key findings reveal that recipients of the Novavax vaccine reported an average of 1.7 symptoms post-vaccination, compared to 2.8 symptoms experienced by those who received Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine. Importantly, only 24.2% of Novavax recipients experienced Grade 2 or higher symptoms, compared to 43.8% of Pfizer-BioNTech recipients. Furthermore, local reactogenicity events were 12.5% lower in Novavax recipients.
The study also assessed the impact of these symptoms on daily activities. Novavax recipients reported significantly fewer hours of missed work, averaging 0.7 hours compared to 1.4 hours for those vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine. The impact on productivity was similarly reduced, with Novavax recipients losing an average of 0.8 hours compared to 2.4 hours for Pfizer-BioNTech recipients.
This study involved 219 participants receiving the Novavax vaccine and 369 receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Participants included a range of healthcare professionals, with physicians, nurses, and medical assistants making up a significant portion of the study group. The findings were presented at the Congress of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases 2025.
As these results are preliminary, Novavax plans to submit the full study for publication later this year. The findings highlight the potential for Novavax's vaccine to offer an alternative to mRNA-based vaccines, with a favorable tolerability profile that may reduce concerns over vaccine-induced side effects and productivity losses.
