JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Efficacy of 2 doses of the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech) against COVID-19 was high in pediatric trials conducted before the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant emerged. Among adults, estimated vaccine effectiveness (VE) of 2 BNT162b2 doses against symptomatic Omicron infection was reduced compared with prior variants, waned rapidly, and increased with a booster. ⋯ Among children and adolescents, estimated VE for 2 doses of BNT162b2 against symptomatic infection was modest and decreased rapidly. Among adolescents, the estimated effectiveness increased after a booster dose.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of Varenicline Added to Counseling on Smoking Cessation Among African American Daily Smokers: The Kick It at Swope IV Randomized Clinical Trial.
African American smokers have among the highest rates of tobacco-attributable morbidity and mortality in the US, and effective treatment is needed for all smoking levels. ⋯ Among African American adults who are daily smokers, varenicline added to counseling resulted in a statistically significant improvement in the rates of 7-day point prevalence smoking abstinence at week 26 compared with counseling and placebo. The findings support the use of varenicline in addition to counseling for tobacco use treatment among African American adults who are daily smokers.