Many catching virus after 1st jab, turning silent spreaders: Docs – Times of India

Kolkata News

Kolkata: Doctors and scientists have flagged off concerns about a section of vaccinated population becoming silent carriers and infecting those yet to be inoculated. There have been several instances of vaccine recipients developing symptoms within days of vaccination and testing positive but doctors are more concerned about several others who may also have contracted the virus but are asymptomatic and so a greater threat to others.
While the early breakthrough Covid cases could be due to different strains of viruses getting accelerated after the vaccine dose as has been detected in a study in Israel, others say it could be due to people dropping their guard a little too early after vaccination or catching the virus while waiting for the jab at vaccination centres.
A majority of the critical cases in hospitals are those who have not been vaccinated. While they could have acquired the infection from anywhere, doctors suspect some of them may have received it from inoculated family members who got infected, were asymptomatic, and then spread it.
Subhrojyoti Bhowmick, clinical director (research & academics) at Peerless Hospital, said it could take six-eight weeks from the first dose for a vaccinated person to develop the maximum level of antibody provided the second dose has also been administered. “In the intervening period, the person is susceptible to infection but in a majority of cases, he or she will be asymptomatic. Hence, they will not know that they are infected and will infect others around them,” he said.
Clinical trial specialist and former head of clinical and experimental pharmacology at School of Tropical Medicine, Santanu Tripathi, also cautioned that letting the guard down after the vaccine poses a threat. “The vaccine is not meant to stop transmission. It is meant to boost a person’s immunity against the virus and reduce the severity of the infection. So while they may be relatively safe after the shot, others may not,” he explained.
According to virologist Amirul Mallick of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata (IISER Kolkata), a person who does not have vaccine-induced protective immunity against the virus may pose a substantial risk to others. Since vaccines being administered in India follow the “prime-boost” regimen (same vaccine for 1st and 2nd dose), it is important to get two doses of the same vaccine within the recommended interval.
“Antibody response reaches the peak around 14 days after the first dose. This will subside eventually unless a booster or second dose is given, which provides us with a longer and heightened antibody response to protect us from subsequent infection. Although we do not have sufficient data to answer this, given that there is a gap of 28 days between the two shots, one has to be very careful, not only for oneself but also for others,” explained Mallick.
Sangam Banerjee, a former senior professor at Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics who has worked on non-enzymatic biosensors and bactericidal activities using nanomaterial, further argued that imperfect vaccinal antibodies that are unable to combat a mutated virus can turn recipients into asymptomatic spreaders and infect non-immunized segments of the population.
Behavior scientists say it is the irresponsible behaviour of people post the first dose that puts them at risk of turning into a carrier. Even those who have been carefully following Covid protocols like wearing masks and maintaining distance have started indulging in high-risk behaviour post vaccination. Known as the Peltzman Effect after Sam Peltzman who taught microeconomics in Chicago in the 1980s, it points out how safety perception increases risk appetite. In this case, it will end up putting others in harm’s way.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/many-catching-virus-after-1st-jab-turning-silent-spreaders-docs/articleshow/82489543.cms