London: Britain became the first country in the world Tuesday to roll out the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNtech. Initially the COVID-19 vaccine shots are available at 50 hospitals.
Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) has said it will give priority to vaccinating people over the age of 80. At the same time vaccinating of frontline healthcare workers and nursing home staff and residents will continue. But does it mean that the world in a short while will conquer the COVID-19 virus. Here is what people getting the vaccine should expect.
What happens when a person is injected the COVID-19 vaccine
The COVID-19 vaccine has been developed with new messenger RNA technology using a manufactured fragment of the coronavirus’ genetic code. The vaccine is then injected into the arm. The immunisation is given in two doses, three weeks apart. Trials have shown that the vaccine is 95 percent effective and prevents the recipients from contracting COVID-19.
Pfizer has said side effects in trial volunteers were mostly mild to moderate, and cleared up quickly. The most severe side effects occurred after the second dose. A total of 3.8 per cent volunteers reported fatigue, two per cent reported headaches. However, older adults tended to report fewer and milder adverse events.
What kind of protection does the COVID-19 give?
The vaccine prevented COVID-19 illness seven days after the second injection – which is about a month after the first shot.
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Clinical trials so far have not been designed to determine if an immunised person can still spread the coronavirus to someone else. Some vaccines, such as Hepatitis A, do provide such protection – known as sterilizing immunity – but others do not. COVID-19 vaccine makers focused trials on determining whether the drug stopped people from getting ill.
It will take several more months before it becomes clear how long the vaccination will protect someone from coronavirus infection.
“Until then, it is better to avoid the pub, and other in-person gatherings with many people,” said Dr. Anita Shet. She is an infectious disease specialist at ‘Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’.
Does vaccination help in returning to normal life?
There is no evidence that the immunisation prevents transmission of the virus. Also no vaccine is 100 per cent. Hence scientists have called for continued vigilance, including mask-wearing, hand-washing and social distancing.
“As with all vaccines, it may work really great in certain patient subsets, but not as well in others. Does that mean you are free to hop on a plane or have 30 people over at your house? Probably not,” said Dr. Michelle Barron, senior medical director for infection prevention at Colorado’s UCHealth. She said vaccination campaigns are unlikely to reach ‘a critical mass’ until next spring or early summer.