The Sri Lanka Medical Association on Thursday (09) said that all vaccines reduced death and hospitalisation, and some fully-vaccinated people could get reinfected they will mostly develop mild symptoms such as fever, cough, etc.

The SLMC said that Sri Lanka had relied on vaccination and movement restriction to control the Covid-19 epidemic and that all vaccines approved so far by the NMRA had saved many lives and prevented severe disease. Most people who have died from COVID are unvaccinated individuals. It is therefore essential that all unvaccinated people, over the age of 18 years be immunised, with any of the available vaccines at earliest possible, SLMA President, Dr. Padma Gunaratne said.

“Subject to above recommendation, the SLMA has formulated recommendations further based on scientific principles with an objective of preventing severe disease and deaths. Preventing severe disease will reduce congestion in hospitals and ICU, and will indirectly benefit people with other diseases who also need ICU facilities,” she said.

The SLMA has issued a media statement: “With the roll out of the vaccines, certain characteristics that are specific for the type of the vaccines have been identified. Especially with the Delta variant, while all vaccines reduce death and hospitalization, fully vaccinated people can be infected and develop mild symptoms, such as fever, cough, etc. However, studies have revealed that a minority of fully vaccinated people can get severe disease, and may even die. Studies from Bahrain has shown that in those over 50 years, people given the Sinopharm vaccine, while preventing death and severe disease compared to the unvaccinated, had a slightly increased death rate, and’ hospitalisation compared to the Pfizer, Moderna, Sputnik and AstraZeneca vaccines. Studies from the laboratory of the Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine, Sri Jayewardenepura University (SJPU) has shown that, while almost all people over 60 years given the AZ vaccine develop antibodies, a very small proportion, 7%, given Sinopharm do not do so. In addition, patients with some diseases or on certain drugs (organ and stem cell (bone marrow) transplant recipients, patients with active cancer, those on immunosuppressive therapies and on dialysis, advanced HIV have a weak immune system, and will not produce antibodies, whatever the vaccine that was given.

“1. For this reason, we propose that people over 60 who had been given two doses of Sinopharm, and those with a weak immune system, be given a third dose, with AZ, Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. The study from Bahrain and data from SJPU indicate that people below 60 years produce a robust immune response to Sinopharm, and are protected from death or severe disease.

“2. We therefore recommend that all people (without the diseases mentioned above) are given two doses of Sinopharm. Children from 12 — 18 years generally do not get severe disease. However, children with certain underlying diseases may get severe disease. We therefore recommend two doses of Pfizer for this group. Some people have been administered one dose of Sputnik; the second dose is different from the first. If the second dose is not available.We suggest that a single dose of AZ, Pfizer or Moderna be given instead.

“Studies in the UK and the US have shown, that, with AZ, Pfizer and Moderna, protection (effectiveness) against severe disease and death is maintained for at least six months.

We therefore suggest that, as there may be a waning of immunity with time, a booster dose of the same or a different vaccine, be given to people over 60 years, who had been given two doses of AZ, at least 6 months after the second dose. Studies have shown that immunity is boosted, with this regimen.”