"Preventing Aftereffects"…Domestic and International Studies Refute Vaccine Futility Theory [Reading Science]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] Despite the domestic COVID-19 vaccine booster shot rate surpassing 50%, the number of infections is rapidly increasing. As a result, there is growing dissatisfaction, especially among self-employed individuals who suffer losses due to quarantine measures such as business restrictions. They argue that these 'unnecessary' measures only increase economic damage. However, research results from both domestic and international sources continue to show that COVID-19 vaccination is clearly effective in preventing infection and plays a significant role in preventing aftereffects and severe cases.

◇ Vaccination Reduces Long-term Aftereffects by More Than Half

According to the international academic journal Nature on the 26th, a research team from Bar-Ilan University in Israel recently found that people who experienced breakthrough infections after receiving Pfizer or Moderna vaccines were less likely to suffer from long-term aftereffects compared to unvaccinated infected individuals.

The research team conducted a survey of 3,000 people who had recovered from COVID-19 at least three months prior between June and November last year. The results showed that vaccinated individuals experienced significantly fewer various aftereffects than those who were not vaccinated. Headaches were reduced by 54%, fatigue by 64%, and muscle pain by 68%.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

A similar result was reported in a study conducted by a research team at King's College London in September last year. They surveyed approximately 1.24 million users of a COVID-19 symptom tracking app from December 8, 2020, to June 4, 2021, finding that 0.5% of people infected after the first vaccine dose and 0.2% of those reporting breakthrough infections after the second dose experienced symptoms. Notably, vaccinated individuals were much less likely than unvaccinated people to experience any of the five representative COVID-19 symptoms, severe illness (hospitalization), or long-term aftereffects.

Professor Claire Steves of King's College London told Nature, "It is not yet certain whether vaccination protects against long-term aftereffects caused by the Omicron variant," but she pointed out, "Long-term aftereffects are very troublesome and debilitating, so preventing them is one of the reasons to get vaccinated."

◇ The Only Weapon Against the Omicron Variant

Research has also shown that receiving Pfizer or Moderna vaccines three or more times can protect against the Omicron variant for at least about four months. The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 24th (local time), citing experimental results conducted jointly by the University of Texas Medical School and Pfizer-BioNTech. According to this, the Pfizer vaccine booster shot enhances the neutralizing antibody capability against Omicron. Although antibody levels decline somewhat over time after the booster shot, high levels of Omicron defense were confirmed up to four months after vaccination.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In South Korea, research has shown that when vaccinated, the body's secondary immune cells, T cells, remember the COVID-19 virus and exert strong immunity when a variant invades. Shin Eui-cheol, director of the Virus Immunology Research Center at the Korea Basic Science Institute (IBS), recently published a paper on this in the international academic journal 'Cellular & Molecular Immunology.' Director Shin reported, "T cell epitopes are maintained at 85-90% even in the Omicron variant." The research team confirmed that although the Omicron variant alters about 30 sites on the spike protein that binds to the human body to evade antibodies and B cells responsible for 'alerting' the immune system, T cells, which directly kill viruses and infected cells, cannot be deceived.