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Having COVID-19 in the past is not a contraindication to vaccinations, moreover – specialists urge convalescents to vaccinate. Containment does not give permanent immunity. Find out when it’s best to vaccinate after an infection and what to expect.
- Experts agree that people who have contracted COVID-19 should get vaccinated. – Vaccine immunity is stronger than the natural immunity – says prof. Cook
- Recuperators need to be aware that they may have more severe post-vaccination reactions
- How much do I wait after I get vaccinated? Much depends on how we went through the infection and what medications we received
- You can find out more about COVID-19 vaccinations on the TvoiLokony home page
Vaccinating convalescents against COVID-19
— Post-vaccination immunity is better and stronger than natural immunity. After having COVID-19, some patients regain immunity, while some remain susceptible to recurrence. Virtually 100% of vaccinated persons are vaccinated. protected against recurring severe disease – explains prof. Ernest Kuchar – infectious diseases specialist, head of the Pediatrics Clinic with the Observation Department of the Medical University of Warsaw.
Recently, Gazeta Wyborcza published the answer of the Ministry of Health to a question asked by its journalists about the deaths of people who got vaccinated due to COVID-19. The percentage of those who died from this disease despite vaccination was 0,011, and for people with comorbidities – 0,036. The death rate due to COVID-19 in Poland was close to 2,5 percent.
Post-vaccination infections in AstraZeneka, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson were found on average 9 to 18 days after vaccination. For Pfizer, the mean time to infection in Poland ranged from 21 to 27 days post-dose. Dr. Tomasz Dzieciatkowski, quoted by Gazeta, emphasized that the data provided by the Ministry of Health indicate high effectiveness of vaccines. He noted that several factors could have influenced the coronavirus infection after receiving the vaccine:
- The infection could have started before or shortly after receiving the vaccine (it takes at least a few days from vaccination to the development of immunity after vaccination)
- There are people in the population who do not develop immunity after vaccination for individual reasons (the so-called non-responders)
- Individual factors such as age, comorbidities, etc. play an important role in developing immunity.
See also: Non-responders – they don’t have antibodies after vaccination
Healing from vaccination: what to expect?
Dr. Ernest Kuchar admits that vaccination given to a convalescent may cause more severe general adverse vaccine effectssuch as fever, malaise, muscle aches, weakness and sleepiness.
– To put it simply, for about 2 days the vaccinated healer feels as if he has COVID-19. However, the side effects of the vaccine disappear after two days, while the acquired immunity remains for a long time – emphasizes the specialist.
This is confirmed by clinical studies.
– For example, in clinical trials of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the preparation received over 2. convalescents. The idea was to check the immune system reactions of people who had been infected with the coronavirus. It turned out that there are no contraindications to vaccinate convalescents, on the contrary – it strengthens the level of their protection. Also in the research on the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine to the third phase, convalescents were recruited in addition to those who had never had a coronavirus infection. Again, it was confirmed that vaccination increased their resistance to reinfection. At the same time, clinical trials have shown that they do not experience excessive adverse reactions, says Dr. Pior Rzymski, a medical biologist from the Medical University of Poznań.
Vaccinations of convalescents? What is the interval between disease and vaccination?
On May 17, the government announced changes to the vaccination of people who have been infected with COVID-19. According to the new guidelines, convalescents can come to the vaccination point for the first (or only) dose as early as 30 days from the date they tested positive for coronavirus. Previously, this interval was obligatorily 90 days. As usual in medicine, there are exceptions.
The change in the length of the interval between disease and vaccination gives rise to debate and understandable concerns among laypeople that such an action may reduce immunity obtained after vaccination or undesirable effects. Experts calm down – vaccination one month after infection is safe and gives positive results. The immune response is now stabilized and the administration of the vaccine only acts as a booster, i.e. strengthening the already existing response.
– Note a minor fact. We encounter many more antigens every day and we are also infected by a large number of pathogens present among those around us. If we have developed immunization in the past, then nothing is happening except the immune enhancement for the pathogen in question. In addition, it should be remembered that only 40 percent of humans are it consists of human cells, the rest are other biological elements: bacteria, viruses, fungi and other “creatures”. This whole system acts on elements of the immune system, and as long as it is in balance, we remain healthy. The amount of antigen given in the vaccine in a healthy person is such a small part of the antigens with which he comes into contact every day that it is of no significant importance apart from stimulating the immune memory for the factor present in the vaccine – explains Prof. dr. hab. Włodzimierz Gut, virologist from the National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene.
The change is also in line with the vaccine manufacturers’ recommendations.
– This time allows you to avoid “overstimulation”, that is, overstimulation of the immune system by generating the immune response first natural and then artificial – explains the drug. Bartosz Fiałek, specialist in the field of rheumatology.
On the part of the government, the shortening of these intervals is intended, inter alia, to speeding up the vaccination process of the public as vaccines become more available.
– We can afford it today – explained the head of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, Michał Dworczyk.
According to specialists, the interval from SARS-CoV-2 infection to vaccination should depend on how someone has contracted COVID-19.
– If it is scanty or asymptomatic, then the produced antibodies will most likely be lost in a relatively short time – then it is worth getting vaccinated within four weeks of infection (but not less!). After a more severe course, immunity is produced, but it is still worth vaccinating, but it is worth waiting – the existing recommendations indicate the dates: from three to six months – explains Prof. dr hab. n med. Joanna Zajkowska from the Department of Infectious Diseases and Neuroinfections of the Medical University of Bialystok.
However, it is recommended that the vaccination be postponed to a minimum of 90 days if the patient received plasma from convalescents or monoclonal antibodies during COVID-19 therapy. The idea is to avoid potential interference of the applied treatment with the immunogenicity of the vaccine (that is, to ensure its maximum effectiveness). Therefore, it is worth taking a discharge from the hospital with you to the vaccination point.
Postponement is also recommended for people who have had COVID-19 and still feel unwell on the day of vaccination.
Remember that before receiving the vaccine, we undergo a medical qualification. If we are healed, and we still feel ill at the time of our vaccination, we complain about respiratory, neurological or cardiovascular symptoms, then we should report it to the doctor at the vaccination center or to the attending physician. Perhaps, in some cases, you need to normalize your health first before vaccination. Patients with an unstable chronic disease should do the same: contact their physician to stabilize the clinical condition before receiving the vaccine.
You can buy a blood test kit for COVID-19 immunity from Medonet Market
Author: Monika Wysocka, Zdrowie.pap.pl / Serwis Zdrowie
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