Fight against time. Time is now the biggest factor in the effort to quickly normalize public life around the world with the coronavirus vaccine.
As of January 23, 60 million people worldwide have been given a dose of the vaccine.
But even though vaccination has started in different countries, a number of issues remain unresolved.
It is not yet known how long the vaccine will last, or whether the new forms of coronavirus will be able to prevent them at all.
Although the world's largest immunization program has been launched, four important questions remain unanswered.
1. How long will the vaccine prevent the disease?
Dr. Andrew Badley says the data shows that many people will be infected with corona even if they get vaccinated.
For the past few months, many have been wondering: How to get a vaccine, and has our immunity increased since we were infected with the coronavirus?
The results of the first research on immunity in the medium and long term have already been published a year after the onset of the epidemic.
But one of the limitations of these studies is that little is known about the long-term effects of vaccines on human health, as it takes a long time to develop.
However, according to the La Jolla Institute of Immunology in California, the immune system remains in the human body for at least about six months after recovering from a corona infection.
A similar study by the Department of Public Health in England found similar results. They say most patients recovering from covid will be free of the risk of re-infection for at least five months.
However, since the first infection did not occur more than five months ago, some scientists believe that immunity will last a long time, perhaps a few years.
But it is true that the same thing will not happen to all patients. Because everyone's immune system is different and the chances of getting infected again depend on it.
The same thing will happen with vaccines.
"It's very difficult to say how long immunity will last," said a virologist at the University of Leicester in the UK. Julian Tang said, "Because we have just started vaccinating. The results will be different for each patient. Much depends on the type of vaccine being administered. But immunity can probably last from six months to a year."
However, Professor Mayo Clinic in the United States. Andrew Badley is even more optimistic. He says, “I am sure that the effects and immunity of the vaccine will last for many years.
"It is also important to review in detail what happens to the patient after vaccination and what their immunity is."
2. Can coronavirus occur after vaccination?
Yes, it could be, and there are several reasons behind it.
The first reason is that no matter what type of vaccine you take, most vaccines start working two to three weeks after the first dose.
"If the virus enters your body the day or a week after the vaccination, you are still at risk of infection, and you can infect others," he said. Tang was explaining to the BBC.
Again, a few weeks after taking two doses of the vaccine, someone can still get corona.
"The data we have shows that some people can become infected even after being vaccinated. However, they will be less likely to get sick than those who have not been vaccinated at all, and their levels of the virus will be much lower," he said. Badly.
"I think it will be very difficult to spread the virus from one body to another after receiving the vaccine in the same way."
Thus, there is little disagreement as to whether the corona vaccine can effectively protect a significant number of people. However, it is not yet known how much the vaccine will be able to prevent infection and spread the virus.
"It's a very different virus and it affects people differently," said Jos মান Manuel Bautista, a professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Madrid in Spain.
"The same thing will happen with vaccines. Some people will have strong immunity so that they will not be able to reproduce the virus. But others will be weakened, and some will reproduce and spread the infection."
3. Will the vaccine protect against the new strain of coronavirus?
Several new forms of corona have been identified in South Africa. And because of this, the fear is that it will be much more deadly.
There is a concern about it.
The virus constantly changes its form. Sometimes that change is such that it acquires the ability to inhibit the vaccine. As a result, vaccines need to be changed to prevent them.
New types of the corona that have been found in South Africa or Britain have already spread to other countries. These two new types of coronaviruses also appear to have much higher infectivity.
Moderna announced last Monday that the vaccine they have developed is capable of counteracting the British and South African type of coronavirus. But in the case of South Africa, an additional vaccine needs to be developed that will boost immunity.
Pfizer / Biotech also claims that their vaccine could prevent a new form of the corona.
"Similarly, it should be noted that while approved vaccines are quite effective, they do not provide 100% protection against the original coronavirus, not against newer types of coronavirus," he said. Badly.
Dr. "The safety of the vaccine will largely depend on how different the new corona is from the original one," says Tang.
"The safety of the vaccine will largely depend on how different the new type of corona is from the original one."
In fact, governments and health departments in different countries need to keep an eye on whether new types of corona are being developed and to see if the vaccine is actually working on them.
4. How many doses of the vaccine, how long to give?
Pfizer, Moderna, and Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccines are given in two doses.
Initially, when the trial of the vaccine was going on, it was said that the second dose should be taken three to four weeks after the first dose.
But in late 2020, Britain announced that it would give the second dose three months later in the interest of most people getting the first dose.
Following this announcement, the debate on the best way to vaccinate began in the international arena. But Pfizer and other scientists say that what has been shown to be most effective in clinical trials is this: if the first dose is given today, the second dose must be given exactly 21 days later.
The World Health Organization has also expressed its views. Their advice: Apply the second dose in 21 to 28 days.
However, they also said that in exceptional circumstances it could be extended to a maximum of six weeks.
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