Shomporko Online News Desk: Individuals who have been previously infected with the coronavirus should receive a complete two-dose series of a licensed COVID-19 vaccine, according to Canada’s vaccine advisory committee.
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) amended its recommendations on Thursday, noting that “individuals who have had confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection may be provided a complete series of a COVID-19 vaccine.”
In making the recommendation, the advisory panel took into consideration data from real-world studies.
Some of those included the protective immune response that previous coronavirus infections provide against re-infection; how individuals that have been previously infected with the virus responded after one and two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and “the safety of offering two doses” of an approved vaccine to them.
In a statement released Thursday, NACI Chair Dr. Shelley Deeks said, “The latest evidence and our understanding of immunology tell us that individuals who have been previously infected have adequate protection for several months after the infection, which is improved after the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.”
While it is “not clear how this protection will translate against new variants” of the novel coronavirus, Dr. Deeks said that there are “many reasons that jurisdictions may offer, and individuals may choose, a complete series of two vaccines even after a previous infection, including [for] participation in activities or travel.”
Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam reiterated the same.
“At this point, those who have been previously infected do have an immune response that is enhanced by one or two doses of the vaccine,” Dr. Tam said.
Those who have previously been infected, however, should wait “to obtain a vaccine until they no longer show acute symptoms of COVID-19 and are no longer contagious to others,” according to the advisory panel.
Other criteria to consider when selecting when to vaccinate include the degree of COVID-19 transmission in the community, the circulation of variations of concern, and an individual’s risk of exposure to the coronavirus and severe disease, according to NACI.
Source_ The Canadian Press
