Endless news cycles and viral social media warn of “breakthrough
infections” in people already vaccinated for COVID-19. These reports
leave the mistaken impression that protections afforded by the vaccines
are not working—and they can fuel reticence among the millions of people
in the U.S. who have yet to get a shot. But such infections are not
only known to occur after COVID vaccination. They frequently happen
following inoculation against influenza, measles and many other
diseases.
Wednesday, August 4, 2021
‘Breakthrough’ Infections Do Not Mean COVID Vaccines Are Failing
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Let's be clear: No vaccine is 100% effective. I still see children with chicken pox despite universal vaccination. Mumps still shows up once in a while. But when I see an immunized child with chicken pox, there are maybe 10 lesions on the body at the maximum whereas the unvaccinated child gets covered in hundreds.
ReplyDeleteIt's going to be the same with CoVID. People will get runny noses. They will get coughs. One in a few thousand will get hospitalized for serious illness. This is completely expected and normal.
But get your third shot because otherwise, it'll be much, much worse.
Thank you for forwarding this on. I find it very reassuring. (Have been quietly weighing whether to re-adopt masking protocols recently.)
ReplyDeleteIndeed, and had they used infection as the primary endpoint in the phase 3 clinical trials, it would have shown VE of only ~70%. The symptomatic infection endpoint was what indicated 95% (And the comparable endpoint in JNJ's trial was only 66%, not 95%. As you can imagine, JNJ folks are much more likely to have a breakthrough).
ReplyDeleteEven 70% VE on infection leaves a LOT of people who will be infected. Thanks to the vaccination the person's adaptive immunity (B Cells and T Cells) will respond to such an infection within hours to a couple of days at most (although circulating antibodies act immediately), rather than take 10-14 days or longer to appear and turn on in a first-time encounter. This is an enormous difference.