Why people who've had COVID still need the vaccine

[mainer]

A very interesting article in THE LANCET. And yes, trust in "past infection" is indeed a reason for vaccine hesitancy in many people. It's true in my family.

Undue public confidence in the long-term durability of immunity following natural infection by SARS-CoV-2 has been shown to contribute to vaccine hesitancy,34 perhaps because of a false equivalence with the long-term immunity after natural recovery from evolutionarily divergent viruses causing diseases such as measles, mumps, and rubella. By contrast, numerous respiratory viruses such as influenza, human rhinoviruses, or coronaviruses can overcome the immunity conferred by previous infections by evolving new variants in the protein domains most frequently surveilled and targeted by the human immune system. Just over a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, novel SARS-CoV-2 variants that can vary in severity of infection and evoke differential immune system responses and that can thwart the durability of immunity started arising.35 Such novel variants probably play a similar evolutionary role in the persistence of lower-severity, endemic human coronaviruses.4 Mitigation of the potential evolution of immune-evading SARS-CoV-2 variants in the near-future might depend crucially on a rapid global deployment of vaccination, which can induce higher immunogenicity than natural infection.36

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanmic/article/PIIS2666-5247%2821%2900219-6/fulltext
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)”

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanmic/article/PIIS2666-5247(21)00219-6/fulltext

[Ms. Toad]

1. I know one person who is vaccinated AND has had COVID twice. n/t

Last edited Mon Oct 11, 2021, 05:44 PM - Edit history (1)

Darn. I miss all the fun stuff. (Troll post)

[The Magistrate]

11. And What Does It Tell You?

[BumRushDaShow]

12. Welcome back!

[Hugh_Lebowski]

2. Working link for ya :)

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanmic/article/PIIS2666-5247%2821%2900219-6/fulltext

[mainer]

3. Thank you!

No matter how many times I copied and pasted I couldn't get the entire link on there

[LetMyPeopleVote]

4. The same analysis applies to monoclonal antibodies

Link to tweet

See https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid-19-vaccine/news/20210826/monoclonal-antibodies-vs-vaccines-vs-covid-19

How is it different from a vaccine?
A vaccine helps stimulate and prepare your immune system to respond if or when you are exposed to the virus, Petty says. “Your immune system is ready to create all these antibodies before they are needed.”

Monoclonal antibodies boost the immune system after you are already sick, speeding up your immune response to prevent COVID-19 from getting worse. “But a vaccine does this much easier and much better,” Petty says.

You can think of monoclonal antibodies as guided missiles that target and neutralize the virus, Fales says. But they don't stick around. While monoclonal antibodies are effective for about a month, they are long gone 6 months later, when a vaccine still offers significant protection.

[underpants]

5. That little facet thing is cool.

How’s that done?

[mainer]

6. ask Hugh_Lebowski -- he did it for me!

I couldn't get the link to work and he did.

[Celerity]

14. google the article title, it yields a working ink

[Tomconroy]

7. I think the consensus in the scientific community is becoming that the vaccines protect

You from serious illness and death, not from infection. Does the Lancet article say anything on that issue about natural immunity?

[mainer]

8. Basically it says that natural immunity will wane

as it characteristically does with rhinovirus, influenza, and coronaviruses. These viruses are quick adapters, and they change too quickly for our immune system to keep up with it. That's why we repeatedly get colds and why we need flu shots every year. Yes, if you catch COVID it will probably protect you for about 6 months from getting sick again. But you will again be vulnerable to infection and illness by the next year, because of the changing nature of the virus.

I'm guessing that we'll eventually have a combo flu/covid vaccine that we'll have to get annually.

[Tomconroy]

10. Sounds right.

[BumRushDaShow]

13. This part is important

and is something I have been yelling about -

By contrast, numerous respiratory viruses such as influenza, human rhinoviruses, or coronaviruses can overcome the immunity conferred by previous infections by evolving new variants in the protein domains most frequently surveilled and targeted by the human immune system.

This is why the whole concept of "herd immunity" doesn't really apply to COVID-19 just like it doesn't apply to any of the viruses that cause "the common cold" and "the flu". Otherwise getting a couple colds or bouts with the flu would make us "immune".

And some of viruses that cause "the common cold" are coronaviruses (meaning they are distantly related to the coronavirus that we all know about now dubbed "COVID-19" (SARS CoV2)). But the latter is obviously so much more damaging and lethal.

The point of the vaccine is to prime the body to more quickly fight the infection, which would also knock the viral load down in someone who has been infected, so it is less likely to be spread.

[Maru Kitteh]

15. + 1

well said.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

16. This NBA player does an amazing job explaining why you need the vaccine

Link to tweet