The impact of COVID-19 vaccines on the Case Fatality Rate: The importance of monitoring breakthrough infections

News Item Multidisciplinary Sciences

THREE, FOUR OR MORE: WHAT'S THE MAGIC NUMBER FOR BOOSTERS?

Clare Watson

Summary: COVID vaccine boosters are effective against Omicron, but continuous use of boosters may not be practical or sustainable.

NATURE (2022)

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Article Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Effectiveness of COVID-19 booster vaccines against COVID-19-related symptoms, hospitalization and death in England

Nick Andrews et al.

Summary: This study examined the relative and absolute effectiveness of mRNA booster vaccination against COVID-19. The results showed that the booster dose of BNT162b2 or mRNA-1273 had a relative effectiveness ranging from 85% to 95% against symptomatic disease, and an absolute effectiveness ranging from 94% to 97%. For hospitalization or death, the absolute effectiveness of the BNT162b2 booster ranged from 97% to 99% in all age groups. The study provides real-world evidence of significantly increased protection from the booster vaccine dose against mild and severe disease.

NATURE MEDICINE (2022)

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Article Immunology

SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections in vaccinated individuals: measurement, causes and impact

Marc Lipsitch et al.

Summary: The study evaluates the impact of breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infections in vaccinated individuals and discusses the challenges in measuring breakthrough infections and determining the factors affecting vaccine effectiveness. The research also addresses key questions on transitioning to endemicity, tracking viral variants, identifying immune correlates of protection, and dealing with public health challenges in countering breakthrough infections amid global vaccine shortages.

NATURE REVIEWS IMMUNOLOGY (2022)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

Fragmented health systems in COVID-19: rectifying the misalignment between global health security and universal health coverage

Arush Lal et al.

Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of strengthening global health security and universal health coverage, as well as the need for integration, financing, resilience, and equity in governance, policies, and investments for better health outcomes. By comparing different health systems' responses to the pandemic, essential lessons can be drawn for creating a more sustainable future.

LANCET (2021)

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News Item Multidisciplinary Sciences

ALARMING COVID VARIANTS SHOW KEY ROLE OF GENOMIC SURVEILLANCE

David Cyranoski

NATURE (2021)

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News Item Multidisciplinary Sciences

COVID-19 New mutations raise specter of 'immune escape'

Kai Kupferschmidt

SCIENCE (2021)

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Editorial Material Multidisciplinary Sciences

COVID-19 testing: One size does not fit all

Michael J. Mina et al.

SCIENCE (2021)

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Article Infectious Diseases

Infection fatality ratio and case fatality ratio of COVID-19

Guangze Luo et al.

Summary: The infection fatality ratio (IFR) is a crucial epidemiological parameter for assessing the risk of death per infection, but estimating the IFR for COVID-19 requires avoiding methods that underestimate the true situation. Research suggests that in areas with extensive testing, RT-PCR-based case fatality ratio (CFR) can serve as a reliable indicator of the lethality of COVID-19.

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES (2021)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

Effectiveness of a third dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine for preventing severe outcomes in Israel: an observational study

Noam Barda et al.

Summary: A study using data from Israel's largest health-care organization showed that a third dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine is effective in preventing individuals from severe COVID-19-related outcomes, compared to receiving only two doses at least 5 months ago. The effectiveness of the third dose in preventing hospital admission was 93%, severe disease 92%, and COVID-19-related death 81%.

LANCET (2021)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

BNT162b2 Vaccine Booster and Mortality Due to Covid-19

Ronen Arbel et al.

Summary: Among 843,208 participants in Israel aged 50 years or older who had received two doses of the BNT162b2 vaccine at least 5 months earlier, those who received a booster had 90% lower mortality due to Covid-19 than those who did not receive a booster during the 54-day study period.

NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (2021)

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Letter Public, Environmental & Occupational Health

Interpretation of COVID-19 case fatality risk measures in England

Katie Harman et al.

JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH (2021)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine in a Nationwide Mass Vaccination Setting

Noa Dagan et al.

Summary: A study conducted in Israel on nearly 600,000 individuals showed that the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine was effective in reducing the risk of infection, hospitalization, and severe Covid-19. The effectiveness in preventing death was 72% during the period from day 14 through day 20 after the first dose, and hospitalization was reduced by 87% for the period 7 or more days after the second dose, similar to results from a randomized trial.

NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (2021)

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Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

An indirect method to monitor the fraction of people ever infected with COVID-19: An application to the United States

Miguel Sanchez-Romero et al.

Summary: This study proposes a method that combines infection fatality rates and case-fatality rates to indirectly estimate the proportion of infected and detected individuals, providing an assessment of the COVID-19 infection situation.

PLOS ONE (2021)

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Article Infectious Diseases

COVID-19 case fatality risk by age and gender in a high testing setting in Latin America: Chile, March-August 2020

Eduardo A. Undurraga et al.

Summary: Early severity estimates of COVID-19 are crucial for assessing the impact of the pandemic. In Chile, real-time delay-adjusted case fatality rates show higher impact on male seniors, especially those aged 70 and above. The peak in estimated CFR during the epidemic peak may be due to insufficient laboratory capacity leading to lower reporting rates.

INFECTIOUS DISEASES OF POVERTY (2021)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

COVID-19 vaccine coverage in health-care workers in England and effectiveness of BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine against infection (SIREN): a prospective, multicentre, cohort study

Victoria Jane Hall et al.

Summary: The study aimed to determine the factors associated with vaccine coverage for two COVID-19 vaccines in the UK and to document the vaccine effectiveness of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine among healthcare workers. Results showed that the vaccine can prevent both symptomatic and asymptomatic infections in working-age adults, with a vaccine effectiveness of 70% after the first dose and 85% after the second dose.

LANCET (2021)

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Letter Medicine, General & Internal

SARS-CoV-2 Infection after Vaccination in Health Care Workers in California

Jocelyn Keehner et al.

Summary: A study showed that while 71% of healthcare workers tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 within 2 weeks after receiving the vaccine, the percentage decreased after the second dose.

NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (2021)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

Vaccine Breakthrough Infections with SARS-CoV-2 Variants

Ezgi Hacisuleyman et al.

Summary: Despite evidence of vaccine efficacy, two fully vaccinated individuals developed mild symptoms of Covid-19 and were infected with variants of SARS-CoV-2. Sequencing of the virus isolates revealed novel mutations, highlighting the potential risk of illness post-vaccination and subsequent infection with variant virus. Efforts to prevent, diagnose, and characterize variants in vaccinated individuals are crucial.

NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (2021)

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Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

mRNA vaccination boosts cross-variant neutralizing antibodies elicited by SARS-CoV-2 infection

Leonidas Stamatatos et al.

Summary: The study found that vaccination of both previously infected individuals and those who were not infected resulted in increased neutralizing antibody titers, with previously infected individuals showing a greater boost in neutralizing titers. Vaccination of naive individuals also elicited cross-neutralizing responses, but at lower titers.

SCIENCE (2021)

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Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Prior SARS-CoV-2 infection rescues B and T cell responses to variants after first vaccine dose

Catherine J. Reynolds et al.

Summary: Vaccination with a single dose of BNT162b2 after prior infection with a heterologous variant substantially enhances neutralizing antibody responses against variants. In contrast, individuals without prior infection showed reduced immunity against variants after receiving a single vaccine dose.

SCIENCE (2021)

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Article Public, Environmental & Occupational Health

Effectiveness of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine Among Residents of Two Skilled Nursing Facilities Experiencing COVID-19 Outbreaks - Connecticut, December 2020-February 2021

Amadea Britton et al.

MMWR-MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY WEEKLY REPORT (2021)

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Article Respiratory System

Recovery from COVID-19: a sprint or marathon? 6-month follow-up data from online long COVID-19 support group members

Anouk W. Vaes et al.

Summary: The study found that while confirmed COVID-19 patients in long COVID peer support groups showed significant improvements in work productivity, functional status, and quality of life between 3 and 6 months follow-up, a considerable proportion of patients still experienced persistent symptoms, moderate-to-poor health, moderate-to-severe functional limitations, considerable loss in work productivity, and/or an impaired quality of life 6 months after the onset of COVID-19-related symptoms. Action is needed to improve the management and healthcare of these patients.

ERJ OPEN RESEARCH (2021)

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Article Public, Environmental & Occupational Health

Role of Ascertainment Bias in Determining Case Fatality Rate of COVID-19

Maia P. Smith

Summary: This study quantifies the relationship between observed case fatality rate and test density, finding that CFR decreases by almost 20% for each doubling of test density. The impact of test density on observed CFR is significant, although there are differences between continents in terms of CFR at any given test density.

JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND GLOBAL HEALTH (2021)

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Article Medicine, General & Internal

Analysis of the potential impact of durability, timing, and transmission blocking of COVID-19 vaccine on morbidity and mortality

Fardad Haghpanah et al.

Summary: The effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in reducing hospitalizations and deaths varies depending on vaccine distribution timing and durability. Early implementation of a less effective vaccine may have a greater impact than later implementation of a more effective vaccine, especially considering the durability of the vaccine. Policy decisions on non-pharmaceutical interventions should take into account the effectiveness of the vaccine and the local outbreak stage.

ECLINICALMEDICINE (2021)

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Letter Infectious Diseases