The Tribune De Geneve, a local Swiss newspaper reported that a university hospital in Geneva had decided to stop using the newly developed Ebola vaccine on their patients. This vaccine is reported to still be in its testing stages, doctors at the University of Geneva Hospital have reported that some of the volunteers were found to have felt sharp pains in their finger and knee joints.
On the 10th, doctors at the University of Geneva Hospital administered the Ebola vaccine on 59 volunteers who showed Ebola symptoms. The BBC reported that the sample drug that was used in this testing was a drug that was developed by New Link Genetics dubbed rVSV-EBOV.
Despite the side effects, Yonhap News reported that insiders of the University of Geneva Hospital have called these joint pains felt by patients as very minor side effects that are not very serious or harmful. The pains lasted only a few days according to the doctors, and they went away. In addition, it occurred to only 4 out of the 59 volunteers. Hospital insiders have expressed that they will continue experimenting the new vaccine in upcoming January.
For now however, the scientists have decided to stop the testing for ethical purposes. They have not anticipated any side effects of the rVSV-EBOV, and had not even relayed the possibility to the 59 volunteers. Normally in such human trials, all volunteers are usually notified of possible effects. In response doctors are reported to have monitored the patients who experienced the joint pains so they could relay this information to future volunteers of other human trials.
If no further problems occur with the rVSV-EBOV will be tested again on the 15th of January on 15 volunteers.
