Data show vaccines reduce severe COVID-19 in older adults
Public Health England (PHE) has submitted a pre-print of a real-world study that shows that both the Pfizer and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines are highly effective in reducing COVID-19 infections among older people aged 70 years and over, reported GOV.UK in a news post.
Since January, protection against symptomatic COVID, four weeks after the first dose, ranged between 57 and 61% for one dose of Pfizer and between 60 and 73% for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
The pre-print article:
· compares the rate of vaccination in symptomatic people aged over 70 years of age who test positive for COVID-19, compared to those who test negative
· compares the rate of hospitalization in confirmed COVID-19 cases aged over 80 who were vaccinated more than 14 days before testing positive, compared to unvaccinated cases
· compares the rate of deaths in confirmed COVID-19 cases aged over 80 who were vaccinated with Pfizer vaccine more than 14 days before testing positive, compared to unvaccinated cases
In the over 80s, data suggest that a single dose of either vaccine is more than 80% effective at preventing hospitalisation, around three to four weeks after the jab. There is also evidence for the Pfizer vaccine, which suggests it leads to an 83% reduction in deaths from COVID-19. The data also shows symptomatic infections in over 70s decreasing from around three weeks after one dose of both vaccines.
The new analysis adds to growing evidence that the vaccines are working and are highly effective in protecting people against severe illness, hospitalization and death. From this week, the NHS has started to deliver second doses to those people vaccinated first, which will provide higher and longer lasting protection.
Separate studies in healthcare workers show that one dose of the vaccine is preventing people from catching asymptomatic COVID-19 by at least 70%. This will help to reduce the spread of infection in hospitals and care homes, ultimately offering more protection to these vulnerable populations.
