South Korea says AstraZeneca, Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines 87% effective after first shot

FILE PHOTO: A health worker gets a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine at a COVID-19 vaccination center in Seoul, South Korea, March 10, 2021. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

SEOUL (Reuters) - One dose of COVID-19 vaccines from AstraZeneca Plc and Pfizer was 86.6% effective in preventing infections among people aged 60 and older, real world data released by South Korea showed on Wednesday.

Data by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) showed the Pfizer vaccine, jointly developed by BioNTech, was 89.7% effective in preventing infection at least two weeks after a first dose was given, while the AstraZeneca shot was 86.0% effective.