Four severe cases of COVID, no deaths

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A year ago we were wondering if an effective coronavirus vaccine could ever be developed for humans. Six months ago, we were wondering if any of the ongoing vaccines would really work or if 50% effectiveness is the best hope.

Today, looking at these figures, I wonder if the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna are the most important medical discoveries from the polio vaccine.

Keep in mind that the segment of the Israeli population that has been fully vaccinated is much older. According to the latest data, 80% of Israelis aged 60 or over got both fires, while only 20% of the population aged 16-59 have. The vaccine eliminated COVID deaths and almost completely eliminated severe COVID cases from the demographic population that is * most susceptible * to these outcomes.

Salvation:

An Israeli healthcare provider that vaccinated half a million people with both doses of the Pfizer vaccine says only 544 people – or 0.1% – were subsequently diagnosed with coronavirus, there were four severe cases and no people died. .

This means that the effectiveness rate is 93%, Maccabi Healthcare Services announced on Thursday, after comparing its immunized members with a “diverse” control group of unvaccinated members …

Of the 523,000 people completely vaccinated, 544 were infected with COVID-19, of which 15 needed hospitalization: eight were mild, three moderate and four severe.

So if you had both photos, you have a one in 1,000 chance of being infected, a one in 35,000 chance of being sent to the hospital, and a one in 130,000 chance of having a really worrying case. And again, this is a sample that includes a huge percentage of older, previously vulnerable people. The vaccine lifted the COVID cloud over the heads of older Israelis.

So much so, in fact, that Israeli hospitals now see more new patients under 60 hospitalized for the disease than over 60:

An elderly person immunized in Israel has a stronger immune response to coronavirus than an immunized person under 60 seems to have. The graph on the right here also shows the age-appropriate hospitalization curve that begins to change as vaccinations increase:

The obvious downside is that these data only tell us how effective mRNA vaccines are. Vaccines that are still in progress, such as Johnson & Johnson and Novavax, use different means to trigger an immune response and have not reached 95% efficacy levels in clinical trials, as did Pfizer and Moderna. Biden’s pandemic advisers published a group of opinions yesterday, warning people not to shut down on effectiveness rates. It would be great if each vaccine was as effective as Pfizer in preventing infection, but when it comes to pushing, no one cares about the infection. We care about severe cases and deaths. A vaccine that did not prevent you from getting sick, but * prevented you from having more severe symptoms than coughing and low fever for a few days would be a great triumph, with the death toll rising to 500,000. And the good news, say Biden’s advisers, is that every major vaccine tested so far – each – has been 100% effective in preventing poor results in studies.

All seven COVID-19 vaccines that have completed high efficacy studies – Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, Novavax, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V and Sinovac – appear to be 100% effective for serious complications. No vaccinated person became ill enough to require hospitalization. No vaccinated people died of COVID-19.

Not all infections are the same. People who are vaccinated against viruses still get infected occasionally. But thanks to a vaccine-ready immune system, infections never progress to make them seriously ill. Vaccine efficacy rates vary only with mild forms of COVID-19 disease. When it comes to the measures that really matter – hospitalizations and deaths – they all work the same way.

The reason op-ed was published was to encourage Americans not to resist an mRNA vaccine if one is not available locally once you are eligible for your vaccine. People watching COVID news know by now that Pfizer and Moderna are extremely effective in preventing infection, while Johnson & Johnson’s product, at least according to the study, is slightly smaller. Some will be tempted to send J&J for this reason, to wait for it until the mRNA products are back in stock. But this is a bad idea, such as choosing to go into battle without a bulletproof vest, because the vest model you prefer happens to be exhausted at this time. When the push comes to push, any vest that stops the bullet is fine. And in the case of COVID, from what scientists can say so far, every “vest” that is either on the market or will soon be fulfilled that task.

By the way, although Israel’s vaccination efforts continue, they have started to weaken lately:

To some extent, abandonment is a simple matter of having fewer unvaccinated people walking around at the moment. But it also suggests that Israel has hit the outer limits of the skeptical part of the population. It is easy to immunize people quickly at first, if you have an efficient delivery system, because all those who are gung ho will queue without the need for encouragement. But they’ve been through that group now. It’s time to start working on fittersers to push the herd’s immunity further.

Instead of an exit question, read this story about the FDA’s Modern Green Lighting to include 14 doses of its vaccine in vials instead of 10, a boost that will quickly increase supply by 20 percent. This is the good news. The bad news is that more doses in each vial means more risk of the doses being wasted if the entire source was not used within six hours of opening. Good luck to the next Dr. Gokal who ends up being fired and prosecuted for trying to do the right thing in that situation.

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