Related MediaMar 16, 2021 11:37:08 IST
A new study has raised questions about how well COVID-19 vaccines protect organ transplant recipients – and what steps people with immune systems should take after the strokes. Vaccines rejuvenate the immune system to recognize the virus, which is more difficult to do if someone ‘s immune cells are not in good order. Transplant recipients take powerful immunosuppressive drugs to prevent organ rejection, which also increases the risk from the coronavirus – but exclude them from vaccine studies. Experts say the sights appear to be safe for transplant recipients and any protection is better than none.
But what protection will they get?
On Monday, researchers at Johns Hopkins University reported the first attempt at detection. They tested 436 people who had had new organs a few years ago and were getting the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. A few weeks after the first dose, 17 percent of transfusion recipients had developed antibodies against the coronavirus, said Dr. Dorry Segev, a Hopkins transplant surgeon who co-authored the study.
Segev acknowledged that recipients will receive better referrals after the required second dose – he will examine that as well – but preliminary studies show that the first impression is enough to produce antibody initiation in almost everyone with a well-functioning immune system.
Most worryingly, people who have been prescribed anti-metabolite drugs were far more likely to respond to the picture than those who do not need that type of drug, said the team in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The findings come after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that fully vaccinated people can take some of the protective and speed-up measures against the coronavirus, but that’s not all.
Segev called on CDC to consider a more positive message.
“From what we know, patients with referrals cannot accept that they are safe after receiving the vaccine,” Segev said. They may need blood tests after the vaccination to be sure, he said.
The CDC did not immediately comment.
Dr. David Mulligan, head of regenerative surgery and immunology at Yale University, said Monday’s report is disappointing but not surprising, as people with weak immune systems do not respond as well as vaccines other.
Some transplant organizations, including the American Transplantation Association, have already warned about that.
Yale’s Mulligan urged patients to speak to their referral center for advice. Those awaiting a life-saving organ transplant may get the vaccine first. He said some people who have already received a transplant may be good candidates for cutting back for some time on some drugs that suppress immunity. And the guardian should make sure you get both vaccination doses for the best chance of protection.
“Our patients are already shouting” for advice, Mulligan said. “Until your antibodies are checked and you know, boy, I have a strong immune response – or we have better data,” the person affected should not be immune to the virus. let down.