BNT162b2 vaccine effectiveness was marginally affected by the SARS-CoV-2 beta variant in fully vaccinated individuals.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To evaluate the effectiveness of the Pfizer BNT162b2 vaccine against the SARS-Cov-2 Beta variant.

Study design and setting

Israel's mass vaccination program, using two doses of the Pfizer BNT162b2 vaccine, successfully curtailed the Alpha variant outbreak during winter 2020-2021, However, the virus may mutate and partially evade the immune system. To monitor this, sequencing of selected positive swab samples of interest was initiated. Comparing vaccinated with unvaccinated PCR positive persons, we estimated the odds ratio for a vaccinated case to have the Beta vs. the Alpha variant, using logistic regression, controlling for important confounders.

Results

There were 19 cases of Beta variant (3.2%) among those vaccinated more than 14 days before the positive

SUBMITTER: Mor O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8553421 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature