The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the most serious health problems of modern times. Millions of people have lost their lives, and billions have been affected by this deadly virus. With the virtue of modern medical science, scientists have developed vaccines for this virus. With the emergence of new variants, dose modulations for these vaccines are necessary. That is why an additional booster dose for high-risk individuals is needed for protection against COVID-19 viruses.
What Is COVID-19?
COVID-19 is a ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus belonging to the Orthocoronaviridae subfamily. This type of virus is used to cause mild to moderate self-limiting infection in the human body. The outbreak of COVID-19 was first documented in the late phase of 2019 in China. The genome of the new coronavirus shows similarities to other β-CoV found in bats. These viruses are responsible for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) COVID-19 infections.
In severe cases, COVID-19 complications result in the patient's death. Persons often complain of severe difficulty in breathing. Other signs of COVID-19 complications include:
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Severe lung congestion, with the secretion of mucus-like substances.
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Drop in oxygen saturation.
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Severe pulmonary pneumonia.
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Increased heart rate.
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High blood pressure.
A low supply of oxygen in the body and the organs ultimately leads to death. People suffering from immunocompromised conditions and diseases like diabetes have poor body defense mechanisms. In such cases, coronavirus infection can prove to be fatal.
Who Are Included in the High-Risk Group?
The high-risk group includes people who are more prone to develop infections. This is because either people have a poor defense mechanism against coronavirus infection or are susceptible to virus exposure. The high-risk group includes:
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Aged people over 60 years of age. Aged people are at the highest risk of getting infected with the coronavirus. Approximately 81 % of COVID-19 deaths have occurred in people over age 65.
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People suffering from co-morbid conditions (diseases that increase the co-morbidity) such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiac disorders, lung disorders, and respiratory problems like asthma. A person's risk of serious illness due to COVID-19 increases as the number of underlying conditions they have increased.
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Immunocompromised people have weak immune systems due to cancer or long-term use of immunosuppressive medications (people suffering from autoimmune disorders, cancer patients, patients undergoing radio and chemotherapy, and patients receiving organ transplants).
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Frontline health and social workers are at high risk of getting infected by the coronavirus. Doctors and nurses are prone to get infected with the coronavirus as they work closely with the patients affected by COVID-19. Hospital staffs are also at high risk of developing the infection.
What Is a COVID-19 Vaccine Booster?
A booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine is an additional dose or doses of vaccine given after the defense provided by the original vaccine shots has started to decrease over time. The protection offered by a vaccine decreases substantially within a few months, especially in the context of each variant of concern. The booster dose helps people to maintain strong immunity and protection against coronavirus and its variants. An additional booster dose is administered to people with a weakened immune system or risk of getting infected by the virus. It is believed to improve a person’s response to his initial vaccine series.
Factors such as waning vaccine and infection-induced immunity, temporal fluctuations in transmission, relaxation of public health measures, and the potential emergence of new variants of coronavirus can cause a surge in COVID-19 cases and prompt the need for booster doses. Booster dose helps to enhance or restore protection against COVID-19, which has decreased over time.
The booster dose can be provided four to six months after the last dose or as soon as possible thereafter. A seasonal booster dose is recommended for people who are at a higher risk of COVID-19. A seasonal booster dose is given if it is been at least three months since the previous dose.
What Is the Need for Booster Dose?
There are many reasons for which booster dose is needed:
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The immunity provided by the vaccine is acquired immunity. As a result, the immunity generated during the vaccination period is reduced. Maintaining a level of immunity to protect against disease booster doses is important.
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Booster doses also enhance the amount of immunity. As a result, it reduces the disease severity in the future.
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As the body develops immunity against the virus. It reduces the amount of viral load in an immunized person. This prevents the spreading of viruses from person to person.
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One of the most important features of this virus is constant mutation. Over the last two years, many mutations in the spike proteins have been observed in the COVID-19 virus. Due to these mutations, the virulence and infectious ability have changed drastically. In the initial times, the R number (amount of the infectibility) was two to three, which means one person can transmit the infection to two to three people. But many variants have much more R numbers. Specifically, omicron or delta variants are much more infectious. The new sub-variant of omicron BF.7 is why the current surge in COVID-19 cases worldwide is due to its high infectivity rate. Also, the change in the spike protein structure is also responsible for its escape from the immune defense system.
What Are the Side Effects of COVID-19 Booster Dose?
After getting the COVID-19 booster dose, people might experience a few symptoms similar to those people might notice when they get flu shots, and these side effects are generally temporary. The side effects include a sore, swollen arm at the injection site. The person might have a fever and experience headaches, body aches, and tiredness for a day or two. Swollen lymph nodes and chills can also occur. These side effects are not serious and do not indicate that a person is sick. They indicate that the immune system is responding to the shots and building up protection against the virus.
Conclusion
COVID-19 infection may cause serious complications. Immuno-compromised patients or patients suffering from a co-morbid condition belong to potential high-risk groups. For such people, it can be fatal. In such cases, additional booster doses have proven to be beneficial. Additional booster doses increase immunity and decrease the chance of infection transmission.
