Fourth dose: Extra protection against Omicron in the elderly

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Data were analyzed for 61,344 people over 60 during the period December 2021-April 2022,

The fourth dose (second booster) of an mRNA Covid-19 vaccine offers additional protection against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in people over 60 compared to the third dose, a new Canadian scientific study shows.

The researchers from the universities of Toronto and McMaster in Ontario, who made the relevant publication in the British medical journal British Medical Journal (BMJ), analyzed data for 61,344 people over 60 years of age during the period December 2021-April 2022, i.e. during the prevalence of the Omicron variant. Of these, 13,654 had been diagnosed positive for the coronavirus.

For those who had had a third dose at least 12 weeks earlier, a fourth dose was provided (one week after vaccination) 19% more effective against the possibility of infections, 31% greater protection against the possibility of infection with symptoms and 40% greater effectiveness against the risk of serious illness.

Relative to the unvaccinated, protection was greater the more doses someone had received. For the fourth dose, efficacy was estimated at 49% against the chance of Omicron infection, 69% against the chance of symptomatic infection, and 86% against the risk of severe Covid-19 disease.

On the other hand, the extra protection of the fourth dose was less if someone had had the third dose less than three months before.

RES-EMP

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