The SARS-CoV-2 virus (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) that causes COVID19 disease continues to claim lives around the world. Nearly 3.3 million people have lost their lives around the world due to the pandemic. The virus has infected around 158.9 million people across the globe. The pandemic has emerged in December 2019, since then many countries around the world have started vaccine rollout programs. Now, scientists have done a case study on a coincidental vaccination and COVID19 infection that has been seen in a 31-year-old doctor. Experts have said that it is important to understand the potential risks of coincidental vaccination and COVID19 infection. They have said that health care workers need to know what actions need to be taken if more cases like this start appearing. Experts have said that there is a need for rapid testing for possible infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus in case somebody deals with reactions after getting the vaccine and it lasts longer than one day.
Experts have said that since December 2020, many countries across the world have started vaccinating their citizens. Most of them have prioritized their health care workers in the vaccine rollout programs. Health authorities around the world have accelerated their vaccination programs to reach herd immunity. Many vaccine developers have used a new tool called mRNA in the development of COVID19 vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna. Vaccines that have been developed using mRNA technology prevent infection by training host cells to produce a protein that triggers an immune response. While developing these vaccines, scientists have used a synthetic version of the mRNA that is used by the virus to produce its contagious protein with host cell mechanisms. The findings of the case study have been released in the journal called Infection.
The immune response time to the virus is still uncertain but scientists have said that the average time for seroconversion for both immunoglobulin G (IgG) and the immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies is nearly two weeks from the onset of symptoms. On the other hand, experts have said that the course of antibody response development is not the same for everyone. It depends on the severity of the illness. In the case study, scientists have seen that a male physician-patient has been diagnosed with symptomatic COVID19 infection just after getting the first dose of the vaccine. He has been working in the non-intensive care COVID19 unit when he has started developing flu-like symptoms a few hours after receiving the first dose of Pfizer-BioNtech shot. He has been suffering from symptoms like fever, chills, cough, headaches, and general limp pain.
Experts have given him general care that has failed to provide him any relief. He has taken nasopharyngeal swab testing to see if he is infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The person has been diagnosed with COVID19 infection, as he has not been dealing with any breathing issues he has been advised to stay in home quarantine. The patient has used the mRNA vaccine for the first time along with flu-like symptoms. He has been found to have highly positive SARS-CoV-2 replicas in the nasopharyngeal swab. In the study, scientists have tried to find out whether the symptoms have been led by the vaccine’s adverse reactions or the infection itself. They have tried to understand if vaccines can influence the accuracy of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test. With the new study, experts have tried to identify if vaccination during the SARS-CoV-2 infection can cause some health risks.
Scientists have tested the patients for antibody response to the virus with the help of commercially accessible serological assays. They have taken a nasopharyngeal swab that has around 1.7 million copies/ml of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The team has repeated this test after ten days and found that the copies of the virus have reduced to 0.013 million copies/ml. A seroconversion as well has taken place for nucleocapsid (N), IgG, and spike protein IgG antibodies. Experts have said that there is a high possibility of coincidental infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and vaccination among people who are highly exposed to the deadly virus such as health care workers. The authors of the case study have said that people should not be scared of PCR testing resulting in a false positive report during vaccination.
They have said that it is highly implausible that the mRNA immunization that is given in deltoid muscle would be found in the nasopharyngeal region. As per the study, the patient has well tolerated the vaccine even after having an existing SARS-CoV-2 infection. Experts have tested the patient for interleukin-6, C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin, leukocytes, and kidney or liver values. The findings of these tests have not shown any pathological lab results seven days after the onset of symptoms. The authors have said that people do not need to undergo SARS-CoV-2 testing before getting the vaccine.
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