Impact of age, ethnicity, sex and prior infection status on immunogenicity following a single dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine: real-world evidence from healthcare workers, Israel, December 2020 to January 2021

The BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine showed high efficacy in clinical trials but observational data from populations not included in trials are needed. We describe immunogenicity 21 days post-dose among 514 Israeli healthcare workers by age, ethnicity, sex and prior COVID-19 infection. Immunogenicity was similar by ethnicity and sex but decreased with age. Those with prior infection had antibody titres one magnitude order higher than naive individuals regardless of the presence of detectable IgG antibodies pre-vaccination.

Automated summary

An analysis of 514 Israeli healthcare workers showed that the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine had similar immunogenicity by ethnicity and sex, but decreased with age. Individuals with prior COVID-19 infection had significantly higher antibody titres compared to those who were naive, regardless of pre-vaccination IgG levels.