Are vaccines effective against the Omicron variant? – Joseph Agius
Results from recently published studies show that vaccine effectiveness with the primary schedule against symptomatic disease is lower for Omicron than for other variants and tends to wane over time. As a
result, more vaccinated people are likely to develop breakthrough disease due to Omicron. Hence the recommendation for anyone over the age of 18 to take the third dose.
These studies also show that vaccination continues to provide a high level of protection against severe disease and hospitalisation linked to the Omicron variant.
In terms of hospitalisation, data is currently showing that protection against severe disease remains high and is substantially higher than against infection and mild disease, albeit lower than the protection against previous variants.
The latest evidence, which includes real-world effectiveness data, also shows that people who have had a booster dose are better protected than those who have only received their primary course.
All eligible adults aged 18 and over should take a booster dose starting from three months after completing the primary vaccination series. The administration of booster doses has had a significant effect in reducing the impact of Omicron infections.
If vaccines work well, why are we still seeing infections, hospitalisations and deaths? – Mary Saliba
Over the last few months, the world was facing high rates of infection due to the Omicron Sars-CoV-2. The increase in infections is due to many factors but the main one is that Omicron is much more transmissible than the previous variants.
Other factors include the waning of the initial protection offered by the primary vaccination series over time and relaxation of social measures like distancing and mask wearing.
However, although the infection incidence was four times higher than the highest peak observed during the pandemic to date, hospitalisation rates and mortality are far below the levels observed in earlier pandemic waves.
COVID-19 vaccines continue to offer protection against hospitalisation and death and remain a crucial tool in the pandemic response.
However, no vaccine is 100 per cent efficient. Even if vaccines continue to protect, some vaccinated people may still develop severe symptoms and be hospitalised, particularly those with underlying conditions.
How long does protection after a booster (third) dose last? – Paul Sammut
At present it is not possible to say how long the protection conferred by a third dose or booster dose will last.
Some commonly used vaccines such as Hepatitis B require three doses to induce long-term protection while others like flu require yearly updates.
In the context of the booster doses, emerging data is suggesting that the immune response is considerably higher than what was observed after the second dose. It will be important to continue to collect data on immune protection over time after a booster dose and in different populations because there might be differences in different age cohorts.
Why should we vaccinate children if the disease is usually mild for them? – Jenny Caruana
Children can still suffer from severe disease with COVID-19 and hospitalisations and death have also occurred in young age groups. Preliminary data indicates COVID-19 vaccines remain effective against severe disease and hospitalisation caused by the Omicron variant. Emerging data (including data from the United States where millions of children have been vaccinated) indicates that COVID-19 vaccines are well tolerated in children. Clinical trials previously carried out in children also showed that side effects of these vaccines are usually mild or moderate and go away in a few days. The most common side effects are injection site reactions, nausea and vomiting. These are usually mild or moderate and get better in a few days.
According to ECDC, beyond the direct health impacts of COVID-19 disease, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the physical and mental health and well-being of children aged five to 11. Numerous factors, such as disruptions to important everyday social and educational activities, have caused a high degree of anxiety and distress in this age group. Hence vaccinating children of this age group continues to protect them.
Is natural immunity better than vaccine protection? – James Grech
Data suggests that natural immunity (that is, immunity obtained by natural infection), while effective, wanes over time. While this also appears to be the case with vaccination, vaccine boosters reinforce the ability of the body to build resistance against the disease without having to be exposed to potentially severe outcomes of the disease again.
For individuals who have already recovered from the infection and thus present natural immunity, evidence shows that vaccination helps develop an increased ability to fight future infection.