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Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine is 92% effective at preventing symptomatic infection, according to the initial data from an analysis released Tuesday by the Lancet. Among nearly 15,000 people given the two-dose vaccine during the Phase 3 clinical trial, 16 confirmed cases of COVID-19 developed, the data showed.
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In comparison, 62 of nearly 5,000 people who received a placebo vaccine became infected afterward, the researchers said.
Serious side effects were rare, with the most common complications reported among those who received the vaccine being mild flu-like symptoms, pain at injection site and weakness or low energy, according to the researchers.
A smaller analysis of 2,000 adults age 60 and older suggests the vaccine is similarly effective and well-tolerated in this older group.
The Phase 3 clinical trial, the final stage of the vaccine approval process, is ongoing with the goal of including 40,000 participants.
"Our interim analysis ... has shown high efficacy, immunogenicity and a good tolerability profile in participants aged 18 years or older," study co-author Inna V. Dolzhikova, a researcher at the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology in Russia, said in a press release.
The vaccine, called Gam-COVID-Vac, or Sputnik V, is one of 64 currently in clinical trials globally, according to the researchers.
Like the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines approved for use in the United States, it requires two doses -- an initial shot, followed by a booster 21 days later.
Similarly, it also requires cold storage, at up to 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
For the preliminary results released Tuesday, 19,866 adults in Russia received either the vaccine or a placebo -- essentially a fake vaccine offering no clinical benefit -- between Sept. 7 and Nov. 24 last year.
Of the 14,964 participants who received both doses of the real vaccine, 16, or 0.1%, developed symptomatic COVID-19, the data showed.
Among the 4,902 participants given the placebo, 1.3% later tested positive for the virus and showed symptoms.
The difference in infection rates between the two groups suggests that the vaccine is nearly 92% effective at protecting against the virus, researchers said.
Serious side effects, or those requiring hospital care, occurred in 0.4% of those in the placebo group and 0.2% of those in the vaccine group, and none was considered to be associated with vaccination.
Four deaths were also reported in the trial, none of which were considered related to the vaccine.
The Gam-COVID-Vac contains two adenoviruses, which are commonly found viruses that cause relatively minor illnesses such as sinus infections and pink eye, or conjunctivitis, researchers said.
In the case of the vaccine, these viruses have been modified to express the COVID-19 spike protein, which triggers the immune system to build up defenses against it. The adenoviruses are weakened so that they cannot replicate in human cells and cannot cause disease.
"Stopping the COVID-19 pandemic requires the introduction of different vaccines based on different mechanisms of action to cover diverse global health demands," study co-author Denis Logunov said
"Our vaccine, along with other [COVID-19] vaccines, helps to diversify the world [COVID-19] vaccine pipeline," said Logunov, who is a researcher at the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology.
