Cure or vaccination – what gives better immunity to Omikron BA.5?

The BA.5 sub-option becomes dominant all over the world. Only in the United States it is responsible for over 65 percent. infections. Scientists are still trying to learn more about this Omicron sub-variant. First and foremost, it is important to determine whether people who are fully vaccinated or have had the coronavirus are protected against BA.5. Scientists have already reached certain conclusions.

1. The BA.5 sub-option becomes dominant all over the world
2. While the researchers are still learning about it, they managed to establish some important facts
3. People who have even recently had the coronavirus can become infected again. However, if Omicrons have been previously detected, the risk is reduced
4. Vaccines can be effective in reducing the risk of developing the sub-variant BA.5. The more doses we took, the stronger the protection
5. According to specialists, people who have not been vaccinated with a single dose are still the most ill
6. You can find more up-to-date information on the TvoiLokony home page

Are convalescents protected from subvariant BA.5?

Recent research suggests that the type of variant you’ve been infected with before may affect your risk of reinfection. Scientists say that if we had Omicron disease, we are much more protected against its new mutations. Conversely, people who have been infected with the Delta variant, for example, may be at higher risk of BA.5.

Unfortunately, it turns out that even if you have had Omicron relatively recently, you may still be infected with its new mutation. «BA.5 differs from some of the other Omicron strains. This is enough to make people who have recently defeated COVID-19 fall ill again, »said Dr. Ted Cohen, an epidemiologist at the Yale School of Public Health, in an interview with healthline.com.

It is estimated that about 15% of people infected with the variant preceding Omikron – such as Delta or Alpha – are. protected against symptomatic reinfection BA.5. In people who were infected with Omikron, this value is 76 percent. “While people who have recently had Omikron appear to have greater protection, it is not known how long it lasts,” said Dr. Julie Parsonnet, epidemiologist and professor of infectious diseases at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Vaccinations against COVID-19 and a new sub-variant of Omikron BA. 5

What about people who are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus? While BA.5 can avoid antibodies – the initial immune response that protects us from infection – according to Cohen, prior infection and vaccination provide strong protection against its severe effects.

A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found that three doses of the vaccine provided better protection than two doses. «Booster doses significantly increase the level of antibodies. Thanks to this virus, it is more difficult to defeat our immune system »- says Dr. Anne Liu, a doctor of infectious diseases.

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According to Cohen, the most severe infections still occur in unvaccinated people. Another study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine may have provided key protection against severe coronavirus symptoms during the BA.2 / BA.2.12.1 wave. In turn, the first booster dose in 52 percent. protected from hospitalization within 120 days after receiving the injection. In people over 50, it was 55 percent. In turn, after taking the second booster dose, this protection increased in them up to 80%.