DOCTOR IS IN by Dr. Adil Manzoor OP/ED
Yeah, yeah, we’ve discussed this before. But we’re going to be discussing it again in light of some new and, apparently, super important evidence.
To start with, booster doses are basically doses that maintain vaccine-induced protection against disease. This usually happens after the immunity provided by the vaccine wanes.
Now, scientists have anticipated the need for booster doses for the coronavirus vaccine later in the future. But data released by Israel have suggested we may need to move that timeline far sooner than anyone expected. So the days of “vax and relax” for this virus may be gone sooner than we think.
A lot of people ask, “Do we really need it?” It’s hard to say, as it’s too early but we may need them sooner than anticipated if this virus keeps mutating. Now more than ever. Now when we can still, to a very reasonable level, control the spread of the dreaded Delta strain of the coronavirus.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has predicted that the Delta variant of the virus will soon become the most dominant strain globally. Its effects are definitely already shaking the world. Take, for instance, the Tokyo Olympics, which has seen several rule changes and regulations in a bid to combat this virus.
The reason the Delta strain is feared so much is that it’s more transmissible than the normal coronavirus, which is just the technical way of saying it can spread and infect far more people than the original. It’s like when Apple drops a software upgrade, only this time, it can cost lives.
An ICMR study has shown that 86% of vaccinated Indians who got the virus were infected by the Delta variant. I just answered the question you were about to ask, didn’t I? Yes, even vaccinated people aren’t fully safe.
The last time I wrote about booster doses, I made it perfectly clear that scientists don’t know exactly when we would need the booster doses. They predicted we would need it, but when was the issue. Finally, it seems we have an answer.
Many have even discredited the idea as just big Pharma trying to squeeze even more money from the government. I beg to differ. After all the coronavirus did in 2020, we cannot afford to risk another huge spike, especially of a more transmissible strain. It’s just too much of a risk.
The reason behind this debate in the first place is that immunity wanes with time. When we get vaccinated or immunized against a particular infection, the immune system, utilizing B and T cells, ensures the body knows how to respond to this virus if it enters the body again.
One of the standard ways of detecting the effectiveness of a vaccine is testing for these memory cells after using the vaccine. This test is usually done through biopsies of the bone marrow and lymph node. If the cells are present, then the need for booster doses is greatly reduced. On the other hand, the absence of these memory cells means the protection offered by the vaccine may not last for long. Tests so far have shown these memory cells were absent in people that have been vaccinated.
Studies have also shown that the booster doses work and are effective, so I don’t see the debate. The only reasonable debate, I believe, is if we actually need the booster doses now. Well, that’s a tough one to answer, given not enough people have even gotten the first dose. I agree that we must not neglect full vaccination, but this new strain has to be treated with a similar level of attention.
Pfizer has announced it will seek emergency use authorization (EUA), the type the coronavirus vaccine got, due to new evidence regarding reduced vaccine effectiveness. Some days ago, one of the top officials from Pfizer met with government officials to prove this. As of now, the FDA and CDC don’t seem to buy it. But things change fast in the medical world. It has to.
In any case, whether the booster doses get EUA now or later, the vaccines are undoubtedly still the only way we can beat the virus. So, get them. And stay safe.
This article was written by Dr. Adil Manzoor DO, a Board Certified Internist & Board Eligible Pediatrician, who works as a Hospitalist, and Emergency Room Physician. He is also the current President of Garden State Street Medicine, a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is to provide free preventive and acute urgent care services for the homeless. He is also the co-founder of his own unique medical practice Mobile Medicine NJ.
References
· https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.aljazeera.com/amp/features/2021/7/20/will-we-all-need-covid-vaccine-booster-shots
· https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20210712/what-to-know-about-covid-delta-variant
