New research in the United States on long-term COVID-19 provides new evidence that it can occur even in vaccinated peopleand that the elderly are at greater risk of long-term effects.
In a study of veterans published Wednesday, about a third of those who became infected despite being vaccinated showed signs of long-lasting COVID.
A separate report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that up to a year after an initial coronavirus infection, one in four adults over the age of 65 had at least one possible long-term COVID health problem, compared to one in five younger adults.
Long-term COVID refers to any of more than twenty symptoms that canthey persist, are recurrent or appear for the first time at least one month after becoming ill with coronavirus. These symptoms can affect all parts of the body and could include fatigue, trouble breathing, trouble concentrating, and blood clots.
Coronavirus vaccines that help prevent severe infections and illnesses provide some long-lasting protection against COVID, but a growing body of research shows that It’s not as much as scientists expected.
The study on war veterans published in the journal Nature Medicine reviewed the medical records of veterans with an average age of 60 years and most of them white. Of the 13 million veterans, almost three million of them had been vaccinated last year, as of October.
About 1%, or nearly 34,000, got sick despite being vaccinated. The lead author of the report, Dr. Ziyad Al Aly, noted that the study was carried out before the highly contagious omicron variant appeared towards the end of the year, and indicated that the rate of infections among vaccinated people has possibly increased.
Infections among vaccinated people and long-lasting COVID symptoms were more common among those who received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, compared to the two applications of Moderna or Pfizer vaccines. It is unknown if any of them received booster doses, as the boosters were not approved in the country until the end of September.
Total, 32% developed long-lasting COVID symptoms up to six months after being infectedcompared to 36% of unvaccinated veterans who were infected and developed long-term COVID.
Vaccination reduced the odds of long-lasting symptoms by a “modest” 15%, although it cut the risk of breathing problems or persistent blood clots in half, said Al Aly, a researcher at the University of Washington and the Veterans Affairs health system in St. Louis. Symptoms include persistent cough or shortness of breath, and blood clots in the lungs or leg veins.
Dr. Kristin Englund, an infectious disease expert and director of a center for long-term COVID patients at the Cleveland Clinic, said the Nature Medicine study mirrors what she sees in her clinic. His long-standing COVID patients include vaccinated and booster doses.
“Having no established treatments for long-term COVID, it’s important for everyone to get vaccinated and use other proven methods of prevention, such as wearing masks and social distancing in order to avoid COVID infections and therefore long-term COVID,” Englund said.
JM
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