How much does Pfizer vaccine protect against the delta variant?
In Israel the protection of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine drops, while the delta variant of the coronavirus is spreading in the country. However, studies show that vaccines remain effective. All the details
In Israel, Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine guaranteed 64 percent protection against COVID-19 between June 6 and early July, when the government lifted restrictions but the so-called variant was spreading across the country. delta. In the period between 2 May and 5 June, the percentage of protection was much higher, at 94 percent. This was reported by the Israeli newspaper Ynet , citing data from the Ministry of Health.
HIGH PROTECTION FROM HOSPITALITY
Vaccinated people, however, run significantly less risk of being hospitalized for COVID-19 than those who refuse the doses. Also in Israel, the vaccine guaranteed 93 percent of hospitalization protection in the June-July period, compared to 98 percent in the May-June period.
THE SITUATION IN ISRAEL
The Israeli government lifted the restrictions in early June, given the good progress of the vaccination campaign: about 57 percent of the population – 9.3 million people in total – received two doses and completed the course.
However, Ynet writes that most of the new cases of contagion concern people already vaccinated: last Friday 55 percent of the new infections concerned citizens who had already been given the vaccine. There were 35 serious cases of coronavirus in the country on July 4; on June 19 there were 21.
The Israeli government is therefore considering re-imposing some restrictive measures to limit infections. The obligation to wear the mask outdoors has already been reintroduced and a third dose of the vaccine is being discussed. According to Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, this third dose will "likely" be needed within a twelve-month period to ensure full protection from the virus.
ARE VACCINES EFFECTIVE AGAINST THE DELTA VARIANT?
The delta variant of the coronavirus – identified in India and present in over 85 countries around the world – is particularly contagious and has caused a lot of concern . According to the World Health Organization, the delta is becoming the dominant variant of the coronavirus, ousting the alpha (formerly known as the "English variant").
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Texas and published in the prestigious scientific journal Nature found that the antibodies developed thanks to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine are able to neutralize all the coronavirus variants identified so far: even the delta therefore, although not with the same effectiveness ..
THE BRITISH STUDIO
An analysis carried out by Public Health England – an agency of the British Department of Health – in the UK, where the delta variant is quite common, states that Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca vaccines offer hospitalization protection for the delta variant above 90 percent.
More specifically, there is talk of a protection of 96 percent for Pfizer-BioNTech (but only after two doses) and 92 for AstraZeneca. Public Health England specifies that these are levels of protection comparable to those against the alpha variant.
IN CONCLUSION
As summarized by Bloomberg , the delta variant poses a threat especially to unvaccinated people, as this coronavirus spreads more aggressively than other variants.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/sanita/variante-delta-efficacia-vaccini-israele/ on Mon, 05 Jul 2021 13:49:07 +0000.