Dr. Jorge Marte, the medical director of the Cedimat hospital center in Santo Domingo, says a new University of Yale study (Heterovac) confirms what the Covid-19 epidemiological bulletin numbers have been showing. Two Sinovac (CoronaVac) Covid-19 vaccines plus one Pfizer booster shot have turned out to be the winning combination to prevent spread of Covid. Dr. Marte is also an advisor to the President on Covid-19 matters.
In July 2021, the Dominican Republic became the first country to strongly recommend Pfizer booster shots to the general population. Dr. Marte was incidental to convincing the Abinader Health Cabinet to go ahead with the booster shot, despite the outspoken World Health Organization recommendation against this. Dr. Marte advocated for the booster because Cedimat was admitting a significant number of persons with two Sinovac vaccines to the intensive care unit.
Dr. Marte says the Yale study confirms that the two Sinovac and one Pfizer combination is more effective than two Pfizer vaccines. “We are better protected than those who got the two Pfizers,” said Dr. Marte.
When Pfizer and AstraZeneca failed to deliver vaccines on time, the Dominican Republic bought the Coronavac vaccines from China that delivered sufficient vaccines on time for practically all Dominicans. When Pfizer later made the vaccine supplies available, these were first used to vaccinate children and then for the boosters. Today, there is an abundant stock of vaccines and people can practically choose the vaccine.
The University of Yale Public Health School researchers participated with Dominican physicians in the booster study that has showed the efficiency of the Dominican combination of vaccines. Dr. Marte points out that contrary to what has occurred in the United States and Europe, the fourth wave has been mild. He attributes this to the extensive vaccination and the booster. Most Dominicans have the two Sinovac shots and increasingly more people are getting the Pfizer booster. Dr. Marte says that the Pfizer booster elevates immunity up to 40 times some 14 days after the booster shot is administered.
The Heterovac Yale study showed that the high immune levels decline after 28 days, but 70 days after the third dose, the research showed that the immune level continued to be 14 times more elevated than before the third dose.
The Pfizer booster shot began to be applied upon demand in the Dominican Republic as a booster shot as of July 2021 to those who had received two doses of Sinovac or AstraZeneca vaccine. The medical authorities conclude the decision reduced the impact of the third and fourth wave of Covid-19 spread. The more aggressive Delta variant prevailed during the fourth wave.
The Abinader Health Cabinet in July 2021 authorized the applying of the booster Pfizer shot (third vaccine) despite recommendations of the World Health Organization that there was not yet scientific evidence for the third vaccine application.
Dr. Jorge Marte does not discard a fourth vaccine, but says the timing for the recommendation has not yet been decided.
1,600 persons participated in the University of Yale study. None of the participants suffered adverse reactions of consideration.
In presenting the findings of the study last week, Dr. Eddy Alberto Perez Then, the Covid-19 specialist in the Abinader Health Cabinet said: “The results presented are unique in the world. The Dominican population that has two doses of Sinovac and a third from Pfizer is much better protected than any population worldwide that only has two doses.”
Dr. Sten H. Vermund, dean of Yale School of Public Health and professor of Pediatrics at the School of Medicine of the University of Yale concluded that protection is high with the two doses of Sinovac, but with the Pfizer booster it is fiercely high. Dr. Sten Vermund, the Anna M.R. Lauder Professor of Public Health at Yale is also an infectious disease epidemiologist.
Dr. Vermund said the findings of the Sinovac-Pfizer study show the Dominican Health Cabinet was correct in its decision to make the booster shot widely available for all the persons who had received the Sinovac and AstraZeneca first two doses.
In the Dominican Republic, thousands decided to get the two Pfizer vaccines once this was available in June 2021. Likewise, minors have been inoculated here primarily with the Pfizer shots since June 2021. During the press conference to announce the study findings, the medics were asked if the persons who have two Pfizers should get a Sinovac shot or another Pfizer shot. Dr. Jorge Marte says another study would have to be carried out to get the answer for that.
Meanwhile, as of the #625 Covid-19 Epidemiological Report, Covid-19 active cases are down to levels of the start of the pandemic, despite the entry of the Delta variant.
It is yet to be seen how the Dominican population fares with the expected entry of the Omicron variant.
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El Dia
Funglode
Yale
6 December 2021