Study: Booster shots at least 80% effective against severe Omicron
Boosters provide around 97% protection against Delta, say UK researchers
People pull shopping carts as they walk past an information board, amid the outbreak of Covid-19, in Bolton, Britain, June 16, 2021 Reuters
Tribune Desk
Publish : 18 Dec 2021, 01:57 PMUpdate : 03 Jan 2022, 03:39 PM
United Kingdom researchers have analyzed the potential impact of a Covid booster shot on the Omicron variant and found it could provide around 85% protection against severe illnesses.
Even though vaccination against earlier strains of Coronavirus provided better protection, the top-up doses should still prevent a lot of people from getting hospitalized, reports the BBC.
It comes as a record 861,306 number of booster jabs and third doses were given in the UK on Thursday.
Based on the limited information available on Omicron, the Imperial College London team developed the model, says the report.
The researchers said there is a substantial amount of uncertainty about the new variant until more real-world information is gathered.
Our bodies learn how to combat Covid-19 after being vaccinated, however, the vaccines were not designed to combat the heavily-mutated Omicron variant.
FILE PHOTO: People walk across Westminster Bridge after new measures were announced due to the Omicron coronavirus variant, in London, Britain, November 28, 2021 ReutersThat is why the UK is advising people to get a booster shot to increase their immunity against the virus.
The BBC report further says, double-vaccinated individuals have been shown to have a 20 to 40-fold reduction in the ability of these antibodies to destroy the virus. Antibodies can stick onto the virus to stop it entering cells and replicating.
The preliminary work from Imperial College assumes there will be a drop in vaccine efficacy against Omicron.
Even with a booster, protection against severe disease from Omicron may be around 80 to 85.9%, compared to around 97% for Delta - the other variant that is currently dominant in the UK.
However, there are other parts of the immune system, such as T cells, that can fight Covid-19 too.
One of the Imperial researchers Prof Azra Ghani said: "One remaining uncertainty is how severe the disease caused by the Omicron variant is compared to disease caused by previous variants.”
"Whilst it may take several weeks to fully understand this, governments will need to put in place plans now to mitigate any potential impact. Our results demonstrate the importance of delivering booster doses as part of the wider public health response," he added.
Dr Clive Dix, former chair of the UK Vaccine Taskforce said: "There is a huge amount of uncertainty in these modelled estimates and we can only be confident about the impact of boosters against Omicron when we have another month of real-world data on hospitalisation, ICU [intensive care] numbers and deaths.
FILE PHOTO: An ambulance drives past St Thomas' Hospital as the spread of Covid-19 continues, in London, Britain, December 12, 2021 Reuters"It remains the case that we still need to get vaccines current and future to the whole world."
Cases of Omicron are rising - and there's more to come.
The UK has recorded 3,201 new cases of the Omicron variant, up from Friday's figure of 1,691.
It takes the total number of confirmed Omicron cases in the UK to 14,909 - although the true figure is believed to be much higher because not all labs can detect the variant and not everyone will come forward for testing.
So how long will it go on for? The modellers aren't sure yet.
There will eventually be more people getting infected than there are people in the UK if you keep on doubling and doubling the cases - so there is a limit to what can be done.
The real question - which still remains unanswered, is -- how ill does it make people and how much pressure is it going to put on the healthcare system?
More than 861,306 booster and third dose jabs were administered in the UK on Thursday - the highest number to date.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said half of all UK adults had now received a booster shot.
Study: Booster shots at least 80% effective against severe Omicron
United Kingdom researchers have analyzed the potential impact of a Covid booster shot on the Omicron variant and found it could provide around 85% protection against severe illnesses.
Even though vaccination against earlier strains of Coronavirus provided better protection, the top-up doses should still prevent a lot of people from getting hospitalized, reports the BBC.
It comes as a record 861,306 number of booster jabs and third doses were given in the UK on Thursday.
Based on the limited information available on Omicron, the Imperial College London team developed the model, says the report.
Also Read - Omicron rewrites the Covid plan for 2022
The researchers said there is a substantial amount of uncertainty about the new variant until more real-world information is gathered.
Our bodies learn how to combat Covid-19 after being vaccinated, however, the vaccines were not designed to combat the heavily-mutated Omicron variant.
The BBC report further says, double-vaccinated individuals have been shown to have a 20 to 40-fold reduction in the ability of these antibodies to destroy the virus. Antibodies can stick onto the virus to stop it entering cells and replicating.
The preliminary work from Imperial College assumes there will be a drop in vaccine efficacy against Omicron.
Even with a booster, protection against severe disease from Omicron may be around 80 to 85.9%, compared to around 97% for Delta - the other variant that is currently dominant in the UK.
However, there are other parts of the immune system, such as T cells, that can fight Covid-19 too.
Also Read - Study: Omicron more likely to reinfect than Delta, no milder
One of the Imperial researchers Prof Azra Ghani said: "One remaining uncertainty is how severe the disease caused by the Omicron variant is compared to disease caused by previous variants.”
"Whilst it may take several weeks to fully understand this, governments will need to put in place plans now to mitigate any potential impact. Our results demonstrate the importance of delivering booster doses as part of the wider public health response," he added.
Dr Clive Dix, former chair of the UK Vaccine Taskforce said: "There is a huge amount of uncertainty in these modelled estimates and we can only be confident about the impact of boosters against Omicron when we have another month of real-world data on hospitalisation, ICU [intensive care] numbers and deaths.
Cases of Omicron are rising - and there's more to come.
The UK has recorded 3,201 new cases of the Omicron variant, up from Friday's figure of 1,691.
It takes the total number of confirmed Omicron cases in the UK to 14,909 - although the true figure is believed to be much higher because not all labs can detect the variant and not everyone will come forward for testing.
So how long will it go on for? The modellers aren't sure yet.
There will eventually be more people getting infected than there are people in the UK if you keep on doubling and doubling the cases - so there is a limit to what can be done.
The real question - which still remains unanswered, is -- how ill does it make people and how much pressure is it going to put on the healthcare system?
More than 861,306 booster and third dose jabs were administered in the UK on Thursday - the highest number to date.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said half of all UK adults had now received a booster shot.
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