What happens in the body when you contract COVID-19 while you are vaccinated?

The last report of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which considered that the variant Delta the coronavirus is as contagious as chickenpox This has increased public concern and forced experts to redouble their efforts to fight the current pandemic which has already left nearly 200 million people infected and more than 4.2 million dead worldwide.

As it turns out, according to the report released last week, the variant is also more likely to overcome the protections offered by vaccines, according to the report, and that Reverse from the agency on Tuesday on recommendations for the use of masks or masks for all, even for fully vaccinated Americans, he relied on this document.

Despite the false feeling that by being vaccinated, we are already completely immune to COVID-19, vaccine specialists and developers warn that vaccines do not prevent 100% of the possibility of infection. What they do is to prevent the disease from developing seriously and ending with mechanical ventilation and many complications.

Vaccination, like contagion, immunizes the affected person to a certain extent, who usually will not experience symptoms or these will be mild with future re-infections. But that doesn’t mean the virus will go away. It can even spread again. The key lies in the activity of the immune system and the ability of the virus to proliferate in these people. A trained immune system eliminates the virus before it can cause serious damage to the body.

According to data from the National Health Surveillance System (SNVS) and data from the Federal Register of Nominal Vaccination (NomiVac), Argentina, less than 0.5% of people vaccinated with the first or second dose had COVID -19, after at least 14 days after application of the first dose. Just one 0.49% of people who received the Sinopharm vaccine fell ill with the coronavirus two weeks after the application of the first dose, according to a report on the percentage of infections in Argentina after vaccination published by the Ministry of Health, which confirmed that the vaccination “clearly reduces the potential occurrence of complications, of hospitalizations and deaths “.

Meanwhile, in the case of the vaccine Sputnik V 0.27% of immune people contracted the disease after 14 days of the first dose. Of those who have received the Covishield vaccine (AstraZeneca), only 0.46% received COVID-19 two weeks after inoculation.

The effectiveness of vaccines

The Sinopharm has an efficiency of 79.34% according to the results of the first interim analysis of the results of the phase 3 trial published last December by the Chinese state-owned pharmaceutical company. This lab also reported that test participants who received two doses produced an elevated level of antibodies against SARS CoV-2 at a rate of 99.52%.

In the case of Sputnik V, studies have shown it reduced the likelihood of symptomatic illness by 91% and almost 100% in severe forms, hospitalization and mortality. Efficacy reported for Covishield indicates a reduction of between 70 and 80% in the probability of symptomatic disease and close to 100% for severe forms, hospitalization and death.

The National Communicable Disease Control Director, Juan Manuel Castelli, explained that “the vaccine clearly reduces the potential occurrence of complications, hospitalizations and death but does not completely prevent the disease”. He also insisted that immunity is only achieved after 21 days of application, and even so, care should be maintained.

According to the doctor Bill moss, pediatrician and professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, “there will be people who will not be protected, not even with two doses of the vaccine, but they should have milder disease “, explained Moss. “Vaccines are actually very protective against serious diseases, so even those who contract COVID-19 after two doses of the vaccine are much more likely to have mild illness. “

Moss noted that at present, with high transmission rates and thousands of COVID-19 cases diagnosed daily, the amount of virus circulating in the world is high, especially since it is early enough. in the vaccination process. “Once community transmission starts to decline, we will see fewer cases overall and fewer outbreaks as a result,” Tenuous.

“It can happen after the first dose or after the second”. In this way it becomes fundamental andl post-vaccination care with social distancing and mask», Analyzed the infectious disease doctor Roberto Debbag.

“The vaccine protects against severe forms of the disease. It does not prevent contagion 100%. This is why we say that the vaccine is one more protective element against the virus and we must continue to take care of ourselves», Declared the infectologist consulted by this means Lautaro de Vedia, former president of the Argentine Society of Infectology.

Para Moss, once the population is fully vaccinated, which means that you received both doses of the vaccine and waited two weeks after the second dose. you should take the same precautions, such as wearing a chin strap and social distancing in public. “There is nothing different that people should do now that we are starting to get vaccinated,” said the specialist.

So if my test is positive after receiving the full immunization schedule, what should I do?

According to the United States CDC, If a fully vaccinated person starts showing symptoms associated with COVID-19, they should be isolated for ten days and close contact tracing should be done.

If the PCR test is positive, the healthcare provider should be informed and in the event that you have to leave the home to go to the doctor, this should be done with a mask and with social distancing.

And what happens to people who live in the same house?

When possible, the person who tests positive should isolate themselves and be confined to their own bedroom and bathroom. If it is not possible to use another bath, always disinfect after use by the patient. Avoid sharing utensils such as cutlery, glasses, among others. Frequently touched surfaces should be cleaned and disinfected daily; wash clothes, sheets and towels very frequently; Keep your distance; and ventilate the rooms often.

“If possible, keep a distance of two meters between the patient and other members of the house”, CDC confirms. This is especially important because it is possible for the person to infect other people, especially those who live with them and are not immune, or people who cannot be vaccinated for specific reasons.

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