THEEma (European Medicines Agency) and theetc (The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (Ecdc) have communicated which subjects must have the fourth dose of the anti-Covid vaccine, that is, the second booster dose after the first complete cycle.
Not all the population will have to receive it because there is not yet enough data for a total green light, but who can do it are:
- people aged 80 or over;
- these are added to those who are already receiving it, that is immunodpressed, cancer patients and i fragile subjects
What do we know about vaccine protection
The two agencies have communicated, after analyzing the data of the last few months, that there is no definitive evidence about the reduction of vaccine protection against the potentially serious Covid disease in people with an unimpaired immune system up to age 79. This means that those with a "normal" immune system do not suffer a decline in vaccination protection against severe forms of the disease. Therefore, no clear indications can be given at the moment on the immediate administration of a fourth dose to the whole population
Of course, however, the two agencies have always stated that they will continue to study and to monitor the epidemiological situation to understand if there is an increasing risk of serious disease among those who are not vaccinated.
If the situation were to change, then the possibility of having the fourth dose, or second booster dose, also be given to other age groups.
Is the fourth dose safe?
In recent weeks there has been discussion about the possibility that a fourth dose administered so shortly after the third could create problems of addiction to the immune system, in the sense that it could have had little effectiveness because our immune system would have got used to the antibodies already in circulation and therefore the dose would not have had the desired effect.
There were also those who were concerned that health risks could emerge, but the EMA and the ECDC announced that "no safety concerns emerged from studies of additional boosters". So we can be confident.
This evidence on the safe effects of the fourth dose comes from studies carried out in Israel: according to the data, the fourth dose administered at least 4 months after the third it can restore antibody levels without creating new safety problems. Experts say this second booster can provide additional protection against serious illness, although the duration of the benefits is not yet known and there is too limited data.
New vaccination campaigns in autumn
It is also reported that vaccination campaigns could resume in the fall and the health authorities will decide what is the best time to start.
We'll probably have gods too updated vaccines or, hopefully, universals that might cover us better than the new variants out there.
