Methods to evaluate COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness, with an emphasis on quasi-experimental approaches

Ciencia e Saude Coletiva

article

Pescarini, Julia Moreira¹  Teixeira, Camila Silveira Silva¹  Cruz, Enny Paixão¹  Ortelan, Naia¹  Pinto, Priscila Fernanda Porto Scaff¹  Ferreira, Andrêa Jacqueline Fortes¹  Alves, Flavia Jôse Oliveira¹  Pinto Junior, Elzo Pereira¹  Falcão, Ila Rocha¹  Rocha, Aline dos Santos¹  Silva, Nivea Bispo da¹  Ortiz, Renzo Flores¹  Saavedra, Ramon da Costa²  Oliveira, Vinicius de Araújo¹  Ribeiro-Silva, Rita de Cássia¹  Ichihara, Maria Yury Travassos¹  Boaventura, Viviane¹  Barral Netto, Manoel¹  Kerr, Ligia Regina Franco Sansigolo³  Werneck, Guilherme Loureiro⁴  Barreto, Mauricio L.¹ 

[1] Fundação Oswaldo Cruz;Universidade Federal da Bahia;Universidade Federal do Ceará;Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro

关键词: Coronavirus;    Causal inference;    Immunization;   

DOI  :  10.1590/1413-812320212611.18622021

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Associacao Brasileira de Pos - Graduacao em Saude Coletiva

【 摘 要 】

The evaluation of vaccine effectiveness is conducted with real-world data. They are essential to monitor the performance of vaccination programmes over time, and in the context of the emergence of new variants. Until now, the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines has been assessed based on classic methods, such as cohort and test-negative case-control studies, which may often not allow for adequate control of inherent biases in the assignment of vaccination campaigns. The aim of this review was to discuss the study designs available to evaluate vaccine effectiveness, highlighting quasi-experimental studies, which seek to mimic randomized trials, by introducing an exogenous component to allocate to treatment, in addition to the advantages, limitations, and applicability in the context of Brazilian data. The use of quasi-experimental approaches, such as interrupted time series, difference-in-differences, propensity scores, instrumental variables, and regression discontinuity design, are relevant due to the possibility of providing more accurate estimates of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness. This is especially important in scenarios such as the Brazilian, which characterized by the use of various vaccines, with the respective numbers and intervals between doses, applied to different age groups, and introduced at different times during the pandemic.

【 授权许可】

CC BY