A pharmacist administers a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine to a client at a pharmacy in Livonia, Michigan, USA, on Tuesday, August 17, 2021.
Emily Elconin | Bloomberg | Getty Images
An expert review of scientific evidence to date has concluded that Covid-19 vaccine booster vaccines are not necessary for the general public, a group of leading U.S. and international scientists said Monday in the reviewed journal in pairs The Lancet.
The scientists’ conclusion, including two senior officials from the Food and Drug Administration and the WHO, came as studies continue to show that Covid vaccines authorized in the United States continue to be highly effective against serious diseases and hospitalization. caused by the rapidly expanding delta variant.
While the effectiveness of the Covid vaccine against mild diseases may decrease over time, protection against serious diseases may persist, according to scientists. The body’s immune system was said to be complex, they said, and has other defenses, in addition to antibodies, that can protect someone from serious illness.
“Therefore, the current evidence does not seem to demonstrate the need to empower the general population, in which the effectiveness against serious diseases remains high,” the scientists wrote, adding that the wide distribution of reinforcers “does not is appropriate at this stage of the pandemic. “
They recognized that booster shots might be necessary for the general population if vaccine-induced immunity is further diminished or a new variant appears that may elude trait protection.
They said there are risks of distributing booster too soon, including the potential for side effects, such as a rare heart disease known as myocarditis, which is more common after the second dose of mRNA vaccines.
“If an unnecessary increase causes significant adverse reactions, there could be implications for the acceptance of vaccines that go beyond COVID-19 vaccines,” they wrote.
Comments come a week before the Biden administration says it plans to start offering vaccines against Covid to the general public. An FDA advisory group meets Friday to discuss the data to support the widespread use of boosters.
The administration last month cited three new studies, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that showed its protection against Covid had waned for several months. The administration’s plan, outlined by senior health officials, calls for a third dose eight months after people receive the second vaccine from Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.
Scientists and other health experts have repeatedly criticized the plan, saying the data they cite is unconvincing, characterizing the administration’s push by proponents as premature.
Scientists in The Lancet magazine published Monday include Marion Gruber, director of the FDA’s Office of Vaccine Research and Review, and deputy director Phil Krause. Both officials are leaving the FDA this year after reports that they were frustrated by the agency’s decision to support reinforcements.
The scientists said the increase might be appropriate for some people, such as those with a weakened immune system, who do not produce an adequate immune response after receiving two doses of vaccine.
Federal health officials last month authorized booster shots for these people, including cancer and HIV patients or those who have had organ transplants.