Vaccine Provides 99% Protection Against Delta Strain Death, NIV Study Finds | Bombay News

MUMBAI / PUNE: Scientists at the Pune-based National Institute of Virology (NIV) conducted the largest study to date in India to understand why people contracted Covid-19 despite taking one or two vaccines.
Genomic analysis carried out as part of the study showed the presence of the Delta variant in the majority of the samples, but there were also other variants such as Alpha, Kappa, Delta AY.1 (known as variant Delta-plus in samples from MP and Rajasthan) and Delta AY. 2.

The onset of Covid in vaccinated people is called a “breakthrough infection”. The NIV study, which is at the stage of publication ahead of print, proves that the Delta variant – first isolated in Vidarbha in October 2020 and now recognized as the cause of the massive second wave – caused groundbreaking infections.

“At the moment the Delta variant causes infections worldwide, but the most important point of our study is that vaccination offers more than 99% protection against death even in the presence of the highly transmissible Delta strain and more. virulent, ”Dr Yadav said.
While 53 samples for the study, conducted between March and June, were collected in Maharashtra, the highest number was 181 in Karnataka and the lowest number 10, from West Bengal. Genetic sequencing was performed on each positive sample to find the Delta variant.

“This study indicated that a majority of clinical cases of the breakthrough were infected with the Delta variant and that only 9.8% of cases required hospitalization, while death was observed in only 0.4%. cases. This clearly suggests that vaccination leads to a reduction in hospitalizations and mortality, ”the study concluded.
Most of the patients in this study were young – the median age was 44 years (31-56), most were men (65.1%) and 71% of them were symptomatic, with one or more symptoms. Fever (69%) was the most common symptom, followed by body aches, including headache and nausea (56%), cough (45%), and sore throat (37%).
Researchers said groundbreaking Covid-19 infections have been reported in various countries. “It appears that current Covid-19 vaccines are disease modifying in nature, in which mild or less severe infections are expected to occur in those vaccinated,” the study said. Vaccination prevents serious illness, hospitalizations and death, as is the case in the UK, Israel and Canada.
The NIV doctors who conducted the study said continued monitoring for breakthrough infections is important. “Such surveillance will help us understand the need to adequately refine the available vaccines and also to develop new vaccines with increased potential for protection against variant strains of SARS-CoV-2,” said Dr Yadav.