Millions of people who have recently developed
COVID-19 may have
some new questions about their immunity. If they have not yet received a
booster shot, do they still need to get one? And when is the optimal time to
get it?
اضافة اعلان
Federal health officials continue to recommend that everyone get
vaccinated and boosted, regardless of whether they have had COVID-19. But more
than half of fully vaccinated Americans who are eligible for booster shots have
not yet received them. And the guidance on when to schedule a booster
appointment after recovering from COVID-19 is less than clear. Here is what we
know.
What is the point of getting a booster after you have had COVID?
Most experts agree that vaccines can offer a more reliable and
effective immune boost than a natural infection can.
When you get infected with the coronavirus, your immune system
mounts a series of responses that bulk up the body’s defenses against future
infections. One of the best ways scientists know how to measure that response
is to look at how many antibodies you have produced. In general, people who
have been infected with the coronavirus tend to have lower levels of antibodies
than those who have been vaccinated, said Aubree Gordon, a public health
researcher at the University of Michigan.
One of the reasons for this difference is that infections
trigger many parts of the immune system, and the size of the antibody response
will depend on factors like how much virus you inhaled, whether you have
underlying medical conditions and the severity of your symptoms. “You may have
a high level if you were sicker or sick for longer,” Gordon said. “But it’s
still going to be lower than what we see with the vaccine.”
Vaccines provide a tailored set of instructions for the immune
system to use in the absence of any distractions, such as an active infection,
said Paul Thomas, an immunologist at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in
Memphis, Tennessee. And most people who get vaccinated develop a strong and
predictable antibody response. A booster shot reminds the body to bump up its
defenses — even faster than the first or second shot — in a matter of days.
Studies also suggest that the antibodies produced after
vaccination tend to remain at protective levels for longer.
“I think that’s the biggest argument to get boosted, frankly,
even if you’ve had a recent infection,” said Dr. Amy Sherman, an infectious
disease physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. “It’s a surefire
way to give further protection and make sure your immune system produces peak
responses.”
When is the best time to get a booster?
There is no hard and fast rule for when to schedule a booster
shot after having COVID-19. The optimal timing will depend on your individual
circumstances, including how severe your illness was, how long it has been
since your symptoms resolved and what your risk for re-exposure is.
But if you are dealing with an active infection, the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention recommends waiting at least until you no longer
have symptoms and have met their criteria for ending isolation. (Meaning, if
you had a mild infection, it has been at least five days since your symptoms
started, your symptoms are improving and you have been fever-free for at least
24 hours without the help of medications.)
Some scientists recommend deferring your booster longer. Ali
Ellebedy, an immunologist at the Washington University School of Medicine in
St. Louis, said it might make sense to wait until you have fully recovered or
can get a negative PCR test, although this isn’t a CDC requirement to end
isolation and may not occur until a few weeks — or even months — later.
“You just don’t want to overwhelm your system,” Ellebedy said.
Let your immune system rest after fighting off the coronavirus and before
asking it to ramp up again with the vaccine. This will also allow for a more
refined and durable response, he said.
Of course, deferring a booster isn’t the right option for
everyone. If you have a high risk of reinfection or serious illness — whether
because of your age, medical conditions or a weakened immune system, or because
you live or work in a setting that increases your likelihood of exposure — then
you may want to boost your immunity with an extra vaccine dose sooner rather
than later, Ellebedy added. Getting your booster sooner may also extend
protection to vulnerable family members and children too young to receive the
vaccine.
And of course, most experts agree that if it has been more than
five or six months since you got COVID-19 and you haven’t been boosted yet, you
should do so as soon as you are eligible.
“The booster provides real material help against preventing you
from getting omicron,” Thomas said. “And there’s so much omicron around right
now that if you haven’t gotten it already, then this is a chance to avoid
getting it.”
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