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JULY 7 – On July 3, 2021, the Coordinating Minister of the National Covid-19 Vaccination Program (NIP), Khairy Jamaluddin, optimistically announced that the current rate exceeds previously set target levels and that the country is currently vaccinating at a higher per capita vaccination rate. than the world average. This gives enormous hope to our devastated socio-economy.
However, we must also be aware of the possible blockage in the vaccination rate, which many countries have encountered sooner or later, regardless of the success of vaccine procurement, but rather due to reluctance to vaccinate. This is where every citizen should play their civic role, and here are the scientific reasons why.
Most of the public, far from being at the forefront of scientific research, has severely underestimated Covid-19 (except probably for the less fortunate who have encountered it before) while the accumulation of evidence empirical evidence paints a more startling and darker picture of Covid-19. than initially thought.
Emerging evidence (see here for a good review) suggests that the Covid-19 virus, which binds to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor of a host cell, appears to particularly favor the lungs and human small intestine epithelium as good as vascular endothelium. The latter is a single cell layer that lines all blood vessels (all 100,000 km in total length if placed end to end) and regulates the exchanges between the blood circulation and the surrounding tissues.
Renowned physician, vascular biologist and one of the scientists leading research related to the cardiovascular nature of Covid-19, Dr William Li, summed up in simpler terms the astonishing findings he and a team international other recognized researchers have fallen (Dr. William’s interview with Dr. Mark Hyman is available here).
The team carefully examined autopsy tissue from people who died from Covid-19. Scientists have studied tissue from the lungs to the heart, brain, kidneys – all over the body. What they found was both surprising and absolutely disheartening. This “respiratory” virus has affected the lungs, but it has also affected blood vessels throughout the body.
By getting inside the cells of the endothelium, the SARS-CoV-2 virus disrupted cell membranes, literally scratching the smooth lining of the endothelium and rendering it unable to perform its vital functions, one of which most important is to provide oxygen and nutrition for each person. part of our body.
Now, this scientific discovery sheds a whole new light on the multiple organ failures that occur simultaneously in patients with acute Covid-19 and on a strong link between pre-existing cardiovascular conditions and adverse outcomes of Covid-19, which was evident from the onset of the pandemic.
“But it’s acute Covid-19 in older patients and patients with pre-existing comorbidities” – the younger ones might exclaim.
Not so fast! Known co-morbidities and diagnosed symptoms may be just the tip of an icerberg of deeper immune imbalances and hidden chronic diseases increasingly prevalent in public, including younger generations.
Therefore, it should remain no mystery that, as Covid-19 continues to spread and community transmission reaches wider population circles, many countries, including Malaysia, begin to report the severity of Covid-19. among younger and apparently healthy cohorts.
The post-Covid-19 or “long-haul syndrome” is another unexpected twist in the Covid-19 saga. This is a growing number of patients, mostly young and apparently healthy, who initially had mild to moderate symptoms and did not require hospitalization, but three to six months later have been crushed by a strange constellation of over a hundred different symptoms ranging from brain fog, chronic fatigue, increased heart rate, shortness of breath, extreme muscle weakness, vomiting, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, etc.
Dr William Li, who tried to build on his original discovery of vascular damage in Covid-19 patients and continued to study long-haul, explains what he found: “In patients with the syndrome long-haul, the endothelial injury always seems to be there. . It is as if the whole internal part of your body turns into a chronic wound, stuck in the inflammatory phase, not completing the healing cycle ”.
Another observation made by the scientist is that 41% of long-haul travelers reported that some of their symptoms improved after taking a Covid-19 vaccine. This leads to an interesting hypothesis that, like diseases like lyme, shingles or syphilis, there could be hidden reservoirs of the Covid-19 virus even after supposed recovery, which are not detectable with the usual tests.
Having this fuller picture of what Covid-19 entails, perhaps few people would be willing to roll the dice with Covid-19. Vaccination against Covid-19 could be a safer alternative route.
Yes, vaccination against Covid-19 does not 100% protect an individual from contracting Covid-19. However, it protects in 99.999% of cases from the severity of this disease.
For example, according to recent statistics made available by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, United States (United States), for the period January 1 to April 30, 2021, for approximately 101 million people fully vaccinated against Covid- 19, a total of 10,262 breakthrough infections from the Covid-19 vaccine had been reported in 46 states in the United States. Of these 10,262, 2,725 (27%) were asymptomatic, 995 (10%) were hospitalized and 160 (2%) patients died. In addition, among the 995 hospitalized patients, 289 (29%) were asymptomatic or hospitalized for a reason unrelated to Covid-19.
The following charts, constructed using data from countries for which ICU occupancy statistics are available, highlight the same point – vaccination appears to effectively prevent the severity and mortality of Covid-19.
Note that these countries have used a variety of Covid-19 vaccines (Covid-19 Vaccine Tracker) and now have various variants of Covid-19 of concern circulating in their populations (explore here and here). Note also in particular the experience of the United Kingdom (UK). Although the UK is currently experiencing another increase in recorded infections mainly due to B.1.617.2 (delta variant), this does not match the increase in intensive care patience or deaths from Covid-19. And this is what our injured socio-economy needs to reopen as quickly as possible.
Importantly, the same countries have also gradually reduced their movement control restrictions, as their COVID-19 vaccination programs advance (see graph below).
Overall, it is evident that vaccination plays a crucial role not only for personal protection but for our society as a whole which aspires to return to a certain “normality” in our socio-economic interactions.
Fortunately, according to recent pre-Covid-19 empirical evidence collected by the Our World in Data group, Malaysia was among the countries that have very low reluctance to vaccinate in general and very high confidence in our healthcare staff (doctors and nurses). Hopefully this trend can continue with regard to the current NIP effort.
Systemic information about Covid-19 disease and vaccines could go a long way to helping the rest of the public, who may still be hesitant, to make informed choices. The vast data accumulated during the five months of Covid-19 NIP is the richest data for machine learning algorithms that can be used to assess the safety of various types of vaccines for individuals based on their chronic ailments and diseases. pre-existing.
It is the absence of such a solid database and this transparency that becomes the breeding ground for unfounded fears.
With reluctance to vaccination remaining low and efforts of the Covid-19 PIN building at a steady pace, Malaysia could be well placed to finally emerge from recurring and devastating movement control restrictions.
* Rais Hussin and Margarita Peredaryenko are part of the research team of EMIR Research, an independent think tank focused on strategic policy recommendations based on rigorous research.
**This is the personal opinion of the authors or the publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malaysian courier.
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