The epidemic situation in the Czech Republic has been deteriorating for several weeks in a row – thanks to vaccinations and partly due to immunity acquired after the disease, as many patients still do not get into hospitals as a year ago. However, the data show that even vaccines may not be 100% in all cases and that their effect decreases over time.
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The differences are especially noticeable in the age category 65+. Existing data in October, in seniors, the protective effect of vaccination against infection is exactly 64.4 percent. The average age of people who get into the hospital even after the vaccination is 75 years.
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More and more people are infected with the vaccine
For several months now, most infected seniors have been fully vaccinated. The proportion of infected seniors who are fully vaccinated rose to over 50% in July (55.7%). Since then, it continues to rise to today’s 63.8%.
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But for an objective view of how well the vaccination works, it is also necessary to look at the number of vaccinated. The majority of the Czech population already has two doses of the vaccine in their body, more precisely 57%. However, in the category of seniors it is even more, in the age group 65–69 years 80.4% are fully vaccinated, in the category 70–79 years even 85.5% and in the oldest group 80+ 80.9% of people are vaccinated.
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The effect of vaccination is therefore still clearly visible. More than 80% of seniors are fully vaccinated, but among those infected in this category, vaccinees make up “only” 63.8%. For younger categories, the difference is much larger. In other words, vaccination protects younger people even more. Nevertheless, the numbers show that the effectiveness of the vaccine is declining.
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The ministry even quantifies the declining effectiveness of the vaccine in its regular reports. It indicates the “protective effect of vaccination” for each group according to age and whether it is an infection, hospitalization or placement in an intensive care unit. As of January, the ministry says it protected 91.8% of the vaccine from being placed in the ICU. As of October, the ministry states that the “Protective effect of vaccination” is only 70%.
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The effect of vaccination is decreasing in vulnerable groups
Experts have long pointed out that the effectiveness of vaccination may gradually decrease, especially in older age groups. In its report available to the List of Reports, the Institute of Health Information and Statistics also mentions this trend.
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“The most vulnerable groups of people are partially exhausted by the protective effect of vaccination. There are still very few hospitalized patients with severe complications in the ICU after vaccination (currently 9–10 in the whole Czech Republic) and very seniors predominate among them (average age> 75 years), patients with a number of polymorbidities. The increases so far are very small compared to summer, the daily incomes of such patients are still in units of the week. However, the number of newly infected seniors is also growing slightly after two doses of vaccination, “health statistics write.
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(In) interest in third benefits
So far, over 35,000 people have come for the booster dose of covid vaccination. According to current rules, more than 40,000 people were entitled to it at the end of September, and at the end of October it should be at least a million. Due to the currently approved shift of the booster application from eight to six months, the number of people will soon be even higher. However, it is not recommended for those who have undergone covid in addition to vaccinations.
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The European Medicines Agency has supported the application of third doses and is also supported by the Czech Vaccinological Society.
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“In addition to foreign data from Israel or the United Kingdom, Czech data also indicate a declining effectiveness of vaccination against covid-19 over time, which is especially evident in the population of people 65 years and older. Early initiation of booster doses of vaccines can significantly influence this trend and ensure stronger protection for vulnerable groups, “write vaccine scientists.
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According to data from the Ministry of Health, so far there is no one among those infected or hospitalized with covid who would receive a booster dose of the vaccine.
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