April 27, 2024

Athens News

News in English from Greece

The booster dose should be given 3 months after the main vaccination.

The three-month interval between the second and third doses of coronavirus vaccine, instead of 6 months, was appointed by experts from the Greek Adult Vaccination Committee.

In the face of a slow but successful building of an immune barrier against coronavirus and an increase in the number of vaccination appointments, the Committee decided to reduce the interval between the main vaccination and the booster dose not even to four, but to three months. The goal is to protect the already vaccinated population as much as possible.

The authorities continue to focus on the over 60 age group. However, recent reports show that the coronavirus is spreading among citizens of all ages, and a new Omicron strain has also emerged. All this influenced the decision on the 3-month interval.

For citizens who have recovered from the disease, the committee recommends a booster vaccine after 3 months, and for those who received the vaccine Johnson and Johnson, it should be done 2 months after the main one.

Since last night, a platform for scheduling an appointment opens, and a few more are available for Sunday 5 December. The number of citizens who signed up for revaccination is estimated at 2 million.

The goal of the government is to vaccinate as many citizens as possible by January, who received the primary vaccination before September. Experts suggest that about a week before Christmas, researchers will get a complete picture of the new Omicron strain and the effect of the mutation on the body. While everything is supposed to turn out not so scary in terms of deaths and severe disease.

Experts note that Delta turned out to be by far the most deadly variant of the coronavirus and consider it notable that there are currently no deaths from Omicron. Vaccines show that while their effectiveness, if not completely, but to a large extent covers Omicron… This became a major factor for the Vaccination Committee to direct as many citizens as possible to the booster dose shortly after the second.

Nevertheless, the pressure in hospitals, especially in Northern Greece, does not decrease, and in many cases the occupancy rate in intensive care units reaches 100%. This is compelling evidence that there should be no complacency at a critical turning point in a pandemic.

The closer we get to the holiday period, experts say, the more worries are growing. The only way to make Christmas truly festive is through vaccinations. Against the background of the statement of the Prime Minister of Greece on compulsory vaccination in the 60+ age group, the number of vaccine appointments tripled.





Source link

Verified by MonsterInsights