Everyone wants to strengthen their immune
system so that they can ward off diseases, or fight them, effectively. In the
ongoing pandemic,
the one question that many people have asked is about the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine, and
if one actually needs it. Dr Sandeep Patil, chief intensivist at Fortis
Hospital Kalyan, explains the process of vaccine-induced immunity and says that
vaccination has become a “critical addition” to our defenses against COVID-19.
“This much is certain. But our ability to
achieve vaccination-induced herd immunity is still unknown. That shouldn’t stop
us from trying. It also shouldn’t stop us from practising and promoting safety
guidelines that can actually curb the spread of the disease,” he tells indianexpress.com.
“If COVID-19 is a raging forest fire, then
vaccines are the firefighters trying to quell it. We have to continue with the
preventive measures — social
distancing, mask wearing, hand hygiene, and rapid testing.”
Dr Patil further states that
according to the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, 65 to 70 per cent
of a given population must be vaccinated to halt the spread of disease. “Once
that threshold is crossed, the COVID-19 virus will have too few human hosts to
choose from, driving down transmission rates dramatically. The process of
getting there is simple theory, but laborious and time-consuming in practice.”
Vaccine safety and immunity
The doctor points out that certain concerns
about vaccine safety relate to how vaccines interact with the immune system, or
even how the immune system functions in different situations. “For example,
natural infection versus immunisation. While it is fair to consider these
concerns, it is important to understand them in the context of how the immune
system works. It is true that natural infection causes better immunity than
vaccines. The difference, however, between vaccination and natural infection is
the price paid for immunity. Are we willing to wait that long for more people
to get infected or more lives to be lost? Or do we need to find for proactive
solutions?
“Vaccines,
like natural infections, induce long-term immunity. And moreover, the vaccine
candidates that have received approval from regulatory authorities are
efficacious and safe. Speak with your doctor if you have more doubts,” Dr Patil
concludes.
No comments:
Post a Comment