The fifth wave is progressing and to avoid saturating hospitals, the government and health authorities are encouraging the booster dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
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There is a scientific consensus on the fact that the immunity provided by vaccines against Covid-19 decreases after six months, hence the interest of a booster to reintroduce antibodies into the body. The great advantage of this extra dose is that it has an almost immediate effect. According to the President of the Scientific Council Jean-François Delfraissy, it acts after 48 hours, unlike the first injections which have no effect for at least one week.
Another advantage of this booster dose: it is more effective. This is what Professor Pierre Tattevin, president of the French-speaking Society of Infectious Pathology, says: “The antibodies measured one month after the booster dose are twice as strong as those obtained after the initial two doses.” According to him, we will not have to repeat the operation every six months since this booster will have a lasting effect on our immunity.
We do not yet have precise data, but according to Professor Alain Fischer, the “Mr. Vaccin” of the government, it is “very probable” that the booster dose will slow down the transmission of the virus. And for a very specific reason, says Alain Fisher: “The more antibodies we have, the less virus we have in our throat and nose, and therefore the less risk we have of transmitting Covid.”
The generalization of the booster dose to all adults is premature because we do not yet have solid data on the balance between the benefit and the risk for those under 40 years of age. This is what the Minister of Health is waiting for to decide on a recall for all. Between 40 and 60 years old, an Israeli study published in The Lancet tells us that a booster dose is 93% effective in preventing hospitalization and 81% effective in preventing death. Another American study confirms that an additional dose of an RNA vaccine is well tolerated in this age group of 40-60 years. For the youngest, according to Professor Fisher, there is no contraindication to a vaccine booster: no adverse effects observed in countries, especially Israel, which already practice the booster dose for all from 12 years.