The reality of catching Covid after your vaccine
Robin Hauser, a pediatrician in Tampa, Florida, gotCOVID in February. What separates it from the vast majority of the dozens of millions of other Americans who came down with the virus are this: she sick seven weeks after her second dose of the pfizer-biontechvaccine.
"I was shocked," Hauser said. "I thought," What alliable? How did that happen? "I say now to everyone, including my colleagues, not to leave their guard after the vaccine."
As every day Americans are inoculated, a tiny but increasing number competes with the disturbing experience of becoming Covid despite a photo or even.
In the data published Thursday, the disease control and prevention centers said that at least 5,800 people had fallen sick or positive tested for the coronavirus two weeks or more after completing the two doses of the Pfizer-Biontech or Modern vaccine. .
A total of78 million Americans are now fully vaccinated.
These so-called revolutionary infections took place between people of all ages. Just over 40% were among people aged 60 or older, and 65% took place in women. Twenty-nine percent of the infected people reported no symptoms, but 7% were hospitalized and a little over 1%, 74 people, died, according to the CDC.
Public health officials reported that revolutionary infections were expected because the manufacturers have warned strong and often that vaccines are not 100% protection. The Pfizer and Moderna versions have been constantly demonstrated from an efficiency greater than 90%, more recently for at least six months. Studies have also shown that they are almost 100% effective in ensuring that the small fraction of contracted vaccinated patients The virus will not be serious or required hospitalization.
Nevertheless, people are usually shocked and perfuished when they become the rare breakthrough victim. After months of fear and take precautions to avoid contracting Covid, they felt safe after they had their shots.
Hauser, 52, had remained at home to take care of his children aged 21 and 16, both of whom took the virus. She was confident that she was protected. She also took care of her father, who has cancer.
"It's a minor miracle that I did not infect him before realizing me too, was sick," Hauser said. In accordance with the trendy behavior of the virus, the husband of Hauser, Brian, who had not been vaccinated yet, has never been infected.
Masha Gessen, writerThe New Yorker, completed the two-shot process in mid-February. A month later, Gessen fell ill and tested positive after the GESS, Julia Loktev's son and partner had aloud from Covid. The experience was "disturbing, even a little traumatic," said Gessen. Loktev's disease took place six days after its first dose.
"The psychological effect of getting the virus after a year of being very, very careful and getting vaccinated," said Gessen, 54, said in an interview with KHN. "It took me about three weeks to feel normal." Gessen wrote about the experience this month inThe New Yorker.
Dr. Kami Kim, director of the Infectious Disease and International Medicine Division at the University of South Florida in Tampa, said that doctors are also disturbed when these cases breed.
"All this, although planned, is certainly confusing and frustrating for people, doctors and patients. We all learn to make judgments about the best for our patients - and ourselves, "said Kim.
The vaccine manufacturers said that the number of revolutionary cases reported by the CDC was not surprising.
The last stop analysis of its clinical vaccine test data shows 900 people had COVID after being vaccinated, compatible with an efficiency of 90% or more for the vaccine, spokesperson for Colleen Hussey.
Pfizer spokesman Jerica Pitts said the company would monitor the participants of the trial for two years after its second dose to learn more about protecting the Pfizer vaccine against Covid.
In their reports, the CDC defines a revolutionary case strictly as a disease or a positive test two weeks or more after total vaccination. But tens of thousands of people who had a first shot or are less than two weeks after their second shot infected.
Pfizer and Moderna report data showing up to 80% of protection against infection about two weeks after the first time. But most experts believe that protection varies considerably from 50% to 80%, depending on the duration after shooting and the individual variation that exists with any vaccine.
The second shot still stimulates immunity, but not for a few days, at least, then built over two weeks. And again, it could vary from person to person.
Leslie Freshness, 60, an independent photographer in New York, had his second dose of Pfizer March 12. 12. She was surprised when clear symptoms of Covid showed the 24th of March and she was pretty sick at home for three days.
"You can not print the words I made at the time," she said.
The CDC advises people who get COVID after a first picture to get the second dose shortly after recovery, without any minimum waiting time specified. This is a change of opinion prevalent in December and January, when some state health departments have advised people to wait 90 days after a Covid fight to get a first or second shot, and especially a Second shot.
Conducting this important change is to find evidence from studies and experience indicating that vaccine infection immunity is stronger and possibly more "stable" over time than the immunity derived from the COVID infection.
Michael Osterholm, Director of theCenter for Research and Policy of Infectious Disease At Minnesota University in Minneapolis, said new research and better public health guidelines are urgently needed. For example, a second dose even needed for people who get COVID after the first dose, or the infection itself will also serve a booster of the immune system? And if a second shot is recommended, what is the optimal waiting period before getting it?
"These are important practical questions that need to be priorities," Osterholm said. "We are somehow blindly from flights now."
Other countries have managed the second conduct of the dose differently.
In the United States, the health authorities differ it up to 12 weeks, to stretch the supply of vaccines and prioritize at least a blow in arms faster faster. In Canada, a government vaccine advisory committee recommended that the second dose be delayed up to four months.
At two press briefings this month, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Infectious Allegations and Infectious Diseases and a COVID Councilor of President Joe Biden, said the number of revolutionary cases in the United States is not a cause of alarm and that the administration will continue to monitor these exquests closely.
A significant line of investigation is the size of the size of a role variant or mutated versions of the initial coronavirus set in these revolutionary cases. Research suggests that current vaccines may be somewhat less effective against new variants.
Martha Sharan, a CDC spokesperson, said the Agency now calls on the States to use a genetic sequencing for testing patient virus specimens to identify variants. In Washington State, for example, eight variants were detected in the genetic sequencing of nine rupture cases reported until April 3rd.
Today, the Biden administrationannounced $ 1.7 billion In expenses, it would be sent to the Covid Rescue Invoice to help the CDC, states and other jurisdictions to detect and monitor variants more effectively by setting genomic sequencing efforts.
The CDC has also launched a national COVID vaccine breakthrough database in which state health departments can store and manage data.
"We are behind sequencing samples," Osterholm said. "It will give us valuable information."
Khn correspondent senior Jonel Aleccia contributed to this story.
Steven Findlay, a journalist from KHN contributing, descended with Covid 30 days after his first dose and 24 hours after his second dose.