{"id":1274,"date":"2021-04-02T08:41:45","date_gmt":"2021-04-02T12:41:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/covidqanda.org\/?p=1274"},"modified":"2021-04-02T08:41:45","modified_gmt":"2021-04-02T12:41:45","slug":"what-does-pfizers-news-mean-for-booster-shots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/covidqanda.org\/?p=1274","title":{"rendered":"What does Pfizer’s news mean for booster shots?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Question:<\/span><\/strong> I read yesterday that the Pfizer vaccination is effective for at least 6 months.\u00a0 Why only 6 months and what does that mean for booster shots?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Answer:<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0Pfizer released a statement<\/a>\u00a0yesterday sharing findings from its updated analysis of its clinical trial, which includes 46,307 trial participants, more than 12,000 of whom have had a follow-up time of at least six months. I’ve bulleted below a few of the key findings (not yet peer reviewed).\u00a0 We should expect to continue to see analyses like these as the months progress to inform our understanding of the duration of vaccine efficacy.\u00a0 We can only talk 6 months right now because that’s as long as we’ve been able to have a cohort of folks to follow, *not* because that’s how long we expect vaccines to be effective. When it comes to booster shots, we’ll need them if: a) efficacy\/effectiveness substantially wanes over time; and\/or b) a new variant arises that evades vaccinated individuals’ immune response.\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n