The EMA has given the green light for the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine to be used in the EU.
It’s set to become the fifth vaccine used in the bloc - following Pfizer, Moderna, Janssen and AstraZeneca - after the EMA recommended the EU authorise its use.
Novavax’s two-dose jab - known commercially as Nuvaxovid - is a protein-based vaccine.
Trial results have shown it has an efficacy of around 90% in preventing against symptomatic disease.
However, there’s so far limited data on how effective the vaccine is against the Omicron and Delta strains of the virus.
In a statement, the EMA said: “After a thorough evaluation, EMA’s human medicines committee (CHMP) concluded by consensus that the data on the vaccine were robust and met the EU criteria for efficacy, safety and quality.
“The side effects observed with Nuvaxovid in the studies were usually mild or moderate and cleared within a couple of days after vaccination.
“The most common ones were tenderness or pain at the injection site, tiredness, muscle pain, headache, a general feeling of being unwell, joint pain, and nausea or vomiting.”
Novavax is an American firm, known for their flu vaccines.
Professor Luke O’Neill earlier this year said the technology being used by Novavax is more traditional than the mRNA-based Moderna and Pfizer vaccines.
The vaccine is easily stored in fridge temperatures, and the EU has already ordered up to 200 million doses of the vaccine.
The vaccine’s already been given emergency use authorisation in countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines.
Novavax is already examining how effective booster doses of its vaccine are in protecting against various strains of COVID-19.
