DRIVE FROM BOSTON TO BRAINTREE.
THAT’S TRAFFIC.
EMILY: DR. ANTHONY FAUCI SAYS
IT’S POSSIBLE VACCINE TRIALS
COULD END EARLY IF PRELIMINARY
RESULT SHOW, OVERWHELMINGLY,
THAT A VACCINE IS SAFE AND
EFFECTIVE.
TO TALK THAT THROUGH WITH US IS
DR. DANIEL KURITZKES, CHIEF OF
THE DIVISION OF INFECTIOUS
DISEASES AT BRIGHAM AND WOMEN’S
HOSPITAL.
GOOD TO SEE YOU.
NOT ONLY DID WE HEAR THIS FROM
DR. FAUC BUT THE CDC ASKED SIX
STATES TO HAVE THINGS READY BY
NOVEMBER.
IS IT POSSIBLE AND HOW UNUSUAL
WOULD THAT BE?
DR. KURITZKE PEOPLE NEED TO
UNDERSTAND THAT ALL CLINICAL
TRIALS OF THIS SORT HAVE AN
INDEPENDENT DATA SAFETY
MONITORING COMMITTEE THAT TAKES
INTERIM LOOKS AT THE DAT.
EVERY SEVERAL MONTHS OR EVERY
SEVERAL THOUSAND PARTICIPANTS
WILL LOOK AT THE DATA.
FRIST OF ALL, TO MAKE SURE THERE
ARE NO SAFETY CONCERNS.
IN THIS SITUATION, TO SEE IS HER
OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE OF
EFFECTIVENESS AND PROTECTION OF
THE VACCINE SO THAT WE DON’T
HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THE VERY END
OF THE TRIAL TO KNOW THAT THE
VACCINE IS WORKING.
THERE ARE VERY STRICT RULES THAT
ARE SET UP IN ADVANCE OF THE
TRIAL IN ORDER TO DETERMINE WHEN
SUCH DECISIONS MIGHT BE MADE SO
THEY CAN BE DONE IN AN IRONCLAD
WAY THAT IS NOT SUBJECT OUTSIDE
INTERFERENCE.
EMILY: THIS IS AN IMPORTANT
POINT BECAUSE I DON’T THINK
PEOPLE KNOW THAT.
EVEN IF A VACCINE DID COME THIS
YEAR, THERE IS A QUESTION OF BY
AN.
IS THERE A WAY T KNOW HOW MANY
PEOPLE MAY NOT BE WILLING TO GET
A COVID-19 VACCINE.
 IT’S HARD T NOT GET A
DETAILED SENSE OF EXACTLY HOW
MANY PEOPL MIGHT NOT BE
WILLING.
I HEARD NUMBERS AROUND 30% OF
PEOP MAY HAVE SOME CONCERNS.
THE MORE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT
ALL OF US REALLY NEE TO DO IT A
JOB AT MAKING SURE THAT
EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS WHY
GETTING VACCINATED IS SO
IMPORTANT ONCE WE HAVE A VACCINE
THAT IS PROVEN TO BE SAFE AND
EFFECTIVE.
AND GETTING THAT MESSAGE OUT
WILL BE EVERYBODY’S
RESPONSIBILITY.
EMIL LET’S TALK ABOUT NEW
RESEARCH SHOWING THAT CRITICALLY
ILL COVID PATIENTS WHO RECEIVED
COMMON PRESCRIPTION STEROIDS
WERE MORE LIKELY TO SURVIVE THE
VIRUS.
WHY DO WE THINK STEROIDS COULD
IMPROVE OUTCOMES?
DR. KURITZKES: STEROIDS CAN
IMPROVE OUTCOME BECAUSE THEY ARE
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DRUGS.
WE KNOW THAT A LOT OF THE DAMAGE
TO THE LUNG THAT OCCURS FROM
COVID-19 IS NOW ONLY DUE TO
ACTUAL VIRAL INFECTION OF LUNG
CELLS, BUT IS DUE TO THE IMMUNE
RESPONSE IN THE INFLAMMATORY
RESPONSE THAT OCCURS AS A RESULT
OF THE VIRUS.
WE ALREADY HAVE SOME DATA IN
JUNE FROM A STUDY DONE IN OXFORD
OR RUN BY OXFORD UNIVERSITY IN
ENGLAND THAT STEROIDS MIGHT BE
EFFECTIVE.
WHAT WE SAW PUBLISHE TODAY WERE
SEVERAL ADDITIONAL TRIALS, AS
WELL AS AN OVERARCHING ANALYSIS
OF ALL THE TRIALS LUMPED
TOGETHER THAT CONFIRMED THAT
ORIGIN FINDING SUGGESTING THAT
PEOPLE WITH SEVERE DISEASE AND
THOSE WHO ARE CRITICALLY ILL
WITH COVID-19 MIGHT BENEFIT FR
STEROIDS.
EMILY: THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF
PEDIATRICS ARE SAYING IN THE
LAST TWO WEEKS OF AUGUST THERE
WAS A 17% INCREASE IN CHILD
COVID-19 CASES IN THE U.S.
BACK TO SCHOOL IS HERE.
WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE FOR PARENTS
WHO HAVE KIDS RETURNING TO IN
SCHO LEARNING ABOUT THE BEST
WAYS TO KEEP THAT RISK LOW?
DR. KURITZKES: I THINK CHILDREN
IN SCHOOL SHOULD BE DOING THE
SAME THING THAT EVERYBODY ELSE
IS.
WEARIN MASKS, WATCHING OR
DISINFECTING HER HANDS
FREQUENTLY.
I THINK WE CAN BE REASSURED
BECAUSE RATES IN MASSACHUSETTS
ARE SO LOW THAT STUDENTS
RETURNING TO SCHOOL WILL BE AT A
VERY LOW RISK OF ACQUIRING
COVID-19.
EMILY: T
