Emory among five medical centers testing anthrax vaccine

ATLANTA - Emory University and four other medical centers are searching for 1,560 volunteers to take part in a clinical trial to determine the most effective way to administer the anthrax vaccine. <br> <br> The trial will test whether injecting the vaccine directly into muscle, rather than just under the skin, makes it more effective or reduces the risk of side effects, such as swelling and pain. <br> <br> The trial also will test whether the vaccine can be as effective with fewer shots. Current recommendations for the vaccine, developed in 1970, call for six shots given over 18 months. <br> <br> The research, paid for by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, will be performed at Emory, Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and the University of Alabama-Birmingham. <br> <br> The study will require extensive commitment from the volunteers -- 25 visits over 43 months. Emory, which received a two million dollar CDC grant for its work, said today it plans to pay participants $50 per visit. <br> <br> Hundreds of U.S. soldiers have refused anthrax shots, citing worries they could be connected to complaints of fatigue and memory loss. The government claims the vaccine has severe side effects only in rare cases.