The protection from the first vaccinations against corona is decreasing – now it is especially important to protect the elderly!
Because: In the past three weeks there have been significantly more so-called vaccination breakthroughs in Germany. Corona diseases that can sometimes lead to a serious course of the disease despite a double vaccination.
Since the beginning of February there have been a total of 117,763 breakthrough vaccination cases in Germany. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) sums up in its current weekly report: “However, the proportion of fully vaccinated among the reported cases has increased significantly in the last few weeks”. Because: In the past three weeks alone there were 53 998 breakthroughs.
But that is by no means a reason to panic! It is noticeable that especially among the elderly there are many breakthrough infections and consequently severe disease courses:
| Week 39 to 42 – Age group | Symptomatic corona cases (Percentage of breakthrough vaccination) | Hospitalized cases (Percentage of breakthrough vaccination) | Intensive cases (Percentage of breakthrough vaccination) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 to 17 years | 17,342 (1.3%) | 105 (2.9%) | 4 (0%) |
| 18 to 59 years | 108 011 (37.5%) | 2934 (18.8%) | 391 (12%) |
| over 60 years | 21,928 (58.9%) | 3664 (43.7%) | 608 (33.4%) |
Important: The SMALL group of unvaccinated people currently still makes up the LARGE proportion of intensive care patients. This shows that the vaccine is working. The RKI writes:
“If you look at the proportion of vaccination breakthroughs in all COVID-19 cases, it becomes clear that only a small proportion of hospitalized, intensive care units or deceased COVID-19 cases can be assessed as vaccination breakthroughs.” Among the 1,076 corona patients who died with breakthrough vaccination, 73 percent were 80 years or older. “This reflects the generally higher risk of death (…) for this age group”.
The research institute also soberly states:
- The vaccination effectiveness is 83 (18 to 59 years) and 81 percent (over 60).
- Protection against corona-related hospital stays: 90 or 85 percent.
- Protection against treatment in intensive care units: 94 and 91 percent, respectively
- Protection against death: 98 and 85 percent, respectively
There are also explanations for the vaccination breakthroughs: The breakthrough infections in the elderly are also due to the fact that this group was the first to receive the corona vaccination – here the vaccination effect is already decreasing again. And: the immune system may be weakened anyway due to age.
General Practitioner Dr. Thomas Assmann told BILD: “If many people are vaccinated, the number of breakthroughs is automatically higher.” The RKI calls this trend “expected”. But there is also a solution for this:
▶ ︎ Fast and immediate booster vaccinations for those particularly at risk.
That is why the Standing Vaccination Commission currently recommends the third vaccination (“booster”), especially for people over the age of 70 and residents in care facilities.
The booster is also recommended to nursing staff and other professions with direct contact to people with an increased risk of severe COVID-19 disease, as well as staff in medical facilities with direct patient contact – this group had also received the vaccination six months ago.
But: The booster vaccinations are inoculated far too slowly in Germany! There has not yet been a major advertising campaign for the booster vaccination.
▶ ︎ This is what SPD health expert Karl Lauterbach (57) criticizes in BILD: “Without a real campaign, we cannot protect the elderly from breakthrough infections. The important thing now is to be quick, ”he warns.
Only 1.8 million Germans received their booster vaccination. More than 6.1 million would need the third spade because their vaccination protection is six months or older.
Bitter: Other countries are significantly faster than Germany in the booster campaign. In Belgium, calculated on the population, more than twice as many people are third-vaccinated as in the Federal Republic. Austria and Poland are also clearly BEFORE Germany.
► Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn (41, CDU) has urgently called for booster vaccinations to be used. There is enough vaccine so that everyone who wants can get a so-called booster vaccination.
That would help “that we get through the winter safely,” said Spahn: “You can break a wave with the boosters.” People with a booster vaccination are less infectious and less contagious.
The vaccination rate is hardly increasing any more
Despite the current increase in corona diseases that have to be treated in the intensive care unit (as of October 28: 1860), the situation in Germany’s hospitals is much more relaxed than it was in January: at the sad climax of the second corona wave (January 4 ) 5723 adult patients with corona had to be treated in intensive care units.
The difference to the situation at the time is clear: over 66 percent of Germans are now fully vaccinated (even 85 percent among people over 60) and are thus protected from severe disease in the majority of cases.
The problem: The vaccination rate is hardly increasing any more: by October 26, 69 percent of the population had been vaccinated at least once and 66 percent had been fully vaccinated. Fewer and fewer people have been vaccinated in the last few weeks.