WEBVTT - How Do Breakthrough Infections Work?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff. Lauren Vogelbaum here. When the COVID nineteen vaccine

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<v Speaker 1>became available, Perry Knight of Fort Lauderdale, Florida got in

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<v Speaker 1>line as soon as he was eligible. He had already

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<v Speaker 1>done battle with the virus and wasn't interested in going

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<v Speaker 1>there again. Before the article this episode is based on

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<v Speaker 1>how Stuff Works, spoke with him via email. He said,

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<v Speaker 1>I first tested positive in August and spent two nights

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<v Speaker 1>in the hospital because I was having a hell of

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<v Speaker 1>a time just catching my breath. It had to be

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<v Speaker 1>up there as one of the worst experiences of my life.

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<v Speaker 1>It's like being underwater and about to come up for

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<v Speaker 1>fresh air, and halfway through drawing that fresh air, a

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<v Speaker 1>tightness interrupts it. Night got both doses of the Fiser

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<v Speaker 1>vaccine in May, and despite that he wasn't too surprised

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<v Speaker 1>when he tested positive again in July. He said, I

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<v Speaker 1>was more of having a feeling like, Wow, I should

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<v Speaker 1>just play the lottery, because this luck is incredible, if

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<v Speaker 1>you know what I mean. I was mentally preparing to

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<v Speaker 1>go back into the hospital for another horrible couple days. Fortunately,

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<v Speaker 1>his second go around with COVID nineteen was nothing like

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<v Speaker 1>the first. His symptoms were mild and short lived, and

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<v Speaker 1>experience that has only strengthened his appreciation for the vaccine.

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<v Speaker 1>Knight said, after seeing firsthand my experience with COVID with

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<v Speaker 1>and without the vaccine, it's given me enough faith in

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<v Speaker 1>the medical system that vaccinations are doing their part to

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<v Speaker 1>protect us. It's not a shield a hundred percent preventing

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<v Speaker 1>the virus from getting to us, but it's a relentless

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<v Speaker 1>warrior who really keeps the worst of it at bay. Still,

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<v Speaker 1>it upsets a lot of people that COVID nineteen is

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<v Speaker 1>possible at all post vaccine. How does that even happen?

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<v Speaker 1>How stuff Works also spoke via email with Free Banerjee,

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<v Speaker 1>a faculty member in Walden University's PhD in Public health program.

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<v Speaker 1>He explained, but when a person gets COVID nineteen even

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<v Speaker 1>after being fully vaccinated, this is known as a breakthrough

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<v Speaker 1>infection since it breaks through the developed immune response. This

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<v Speaker 1>type of COVID breakthrough infection is not unusual. Indeed, it's

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<v Speaker 1>actually to be expected given the viruses recent mutations. Houstaff

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<v Speaker 1>Works also spoke with Dr Erin Glatt, a representative for

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<v Speaker 1>the Infectious Diseases Society of America and Chair of Medicine

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<v Speaker 1>at Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside, New York. He said,

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<v Speaker 1>with the delta variant, it is certainly more common. These

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<v Speaker 1>variants have higher transmissibility than the earlier strains. They also

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<v Speaker 1>have higher viral loads, so they are more transmissible even

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<v Speaker 1>to people who are vaccinated, so this is a concern

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<v Speaker 1>a breakthrough. Infections in general are nothing new. The medical

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<v Speaker 1>community sees them every single year with influenza. However, many

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<v Speaker 1>people mistakenly believe that vaccines provide complete and total protection.

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<v Speaker 1>But the truth is that, as with flu vaccines, the

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<v Speaker 1>COVID nineteen vaccines won't prevent you from being infected. They're

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<v Speaker 1>meant to increase your body's ability to fight the virus Effectively.

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<v Speaker 1>Vaccines don't prevent all infections, they just make them less

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<v Speaker 1>likely and prevent serious complications and death when those infections

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<v Speaker 1>do occur. Pharmaceutical companies, for their part, have been straightforward

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<v Speaker 1>from the get go about vaccine efficacy. Both Viser and

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<v Speaker 1>Maderna reported efficacy rates of for the original strain A

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<v Speaker 1>Visers drops to eight percent when faced with the newer

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<v Speaker 1>more contagious delta mutation and maderna is believed to perform

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<v Speaker 1>about the same, But breakthrough infections of COVID nineteen are

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<v Speaker 1>typically so mild that the Centers for Disease Control and

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<v Speaker 1>Prevention or CDC, stopped tracking them starting on May one,

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<v Speaker 1>unless such cases result in hospitalization or death, So for

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<v Speaker 1>CDC tracking purposes, a mild case of COVID nineteen aftervaccination

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<v Speaker 1>is not currently considered a breakthrough infection banners, she said. Nationally,

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<v Speaker 1>forty six U S States and territories voluntarily reported ten thousand,

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<v Speaker 1>two hundred and sixty two breakthrough infections to the CDC

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<v Speaker 1>between January one and April one. By comparison, there were

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<v Speaker 1>eleven point eight million COVID nineteen diagnoses in total during

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<v Speaker 1>the same period. Through July one, there were five thousand,

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<v Speaker 1>nine hundred and fourteen patients with COVID nineteen vaccine breakthrough

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<v Speaker 1>infections who were hospitalized or died in the US, out

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<v Speaker 1>of more than a hundred and fifty nine million people

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<v Speaker 1>fully vaccinated nationwide, and to do the math and put

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<v Speaker 1>it another way, according to this data, fewer than one

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<v Speaker 1>tenth of one percent of the reported cases of COVID

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen from January through April occurred in people who were

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<v Speaker 1>already vaccinated. So let's say you cut a penny into

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<v Speaker 1>ten pieces, and for every hundred cases of COVID nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>you have every dollar's worth. Just one of those livers

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<v Speaker 1>of a penny represents how many vaccinated people got COVID nineteen.

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<v Speaker 1>And furthermore, according to this data, through the middle of July,

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<v Speaker 1>fewer than three hundreds of one percent of people who

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<v Speaker 1>are vaccinated wound up either in the hospital or dying

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<v Speaker 1>from a breakthrough case of COVID nineteen. So take one

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<v Speaker 1>of those slivers of a penny and cut it into

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<v Speaker 1>ten even smaller pair fines livers, then count out three

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<v Speaker 1>of those. That's how many vaccinated people got seriously ill.

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<v Speaker 1>And now I keep saying according to this data, and

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<v Speaker 1>that's because the data may not be complete. Bandage continued.

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<v Speaker 1>It's difficult to determine the rarity of breakthrough infections as

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<v Speaker 1>there is not any concrete, consistent data. A certain factors

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<v Speaker 1>complicate how breakthrough infections are counted. The main problem is

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<v Speaker 1>tracking the prevalence, as many do not experience symptoms even

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<v Speaker 1>if they contract a breakthrough infection. Another challenge is to

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<v Speaker 1>determine which individuals with COVID nineteen are in a long

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<v Speaker 1>COVID phase rather than a potential reinfection. While it may

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<v Speaker 1>be difficult to determine just how many people experience any

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<v Speaker 1>type of COVID nineteen related symptoms after vaccination, we can

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<v Speaker 1>see that the numbers of people who get them are small.

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<v Speaker 1>Just as important, if they do get COVID nineteen, the

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<v Speaker 1>symptoms will be much milder than if they had been unvaccinated.

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<v Speaker 1>One study found that fully vaccinated people accounted for only

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<v Speaker 1>one percent of COVID nineteen cases. On August two, one,

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<v Speaker 1>the White House COVID Data Director announced that at least

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<v Speaker 1>seventy of adults in America have gotten at least one

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<v Speaker 1>shot of the vaccine. The two most common vaccinations require

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<v Speaker 1>two jabs weeks apart to achieve full immunity. This was

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<v Speaker 1>good news, as a full vaccination rate of seventy is

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<v Speaker 1>needed for herd immunity. Until that's a achieved breakthrough, infections

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<v Speaker 1>are likely to continue with a vengeance. As of August one,

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<v Speaker 1>only seven percent of eligible people in the United States

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<v Speaker 1>were fully vaccinated, and that number varies widely. By state.

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<v Speaker 1>The CDC had dropped its masking guideline for vaccinated people

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<v Speaker 1>in May, but then in late July it reversed itself

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<v Speaker 1>and said that vaccinated people in areas with quote substantial

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<v Speaker 1>or high transmission should wear masks and doors because new

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<v Speaker 1>data had shown that vaccinated people who had the delta

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<v Speaker 1>variant could transmit the virus as easily as unvaccinated people.

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<v Speaker 1>These kinds of changes in guidelines are a totally normal

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<v Speaker 1>part of the scientific process. We're still learning how this

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<v Speaker 1>pandemic works, and experts are giving us the best advice

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<v Speaker 1>they have every time they learn something new. This isn't

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<v Speaker 1>a flaw in the system, it's a perk. A good

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<v Speaker 1>science can admit when it was incorrect and then a

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<v Speaker 1>just course. This is all science and action, and what

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<v Speaker 1>science is sure of is that more people need to

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<v Speaker 1>get vaccinated to make COVID nineteen less deadly. The Howstuff

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<v Speaker 1>Works team also spoke with epidemiologist Dr Matt Weisenbach with

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<v Speaker 1>Walter's Clue or health. He said, Unfortunately, it's likely that

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<v Speaker 1>the remaining phases of the pandemic will predominantly impact the

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<v Speaker 1>unvaccinated segment of the population. Vaccination remains the single most

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<v Speaker 1>important choice to protect yourself, your loved ones, and your

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<v Speaker 1>community against COVID nineteen. Today's episode is based on the

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<v Speaker 1>article how does COVID nineteen break through in vaccinated people?

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<v Speaker 1>On how staff works dot com written by Leah Hoyt.

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<v Speaker 1>Brain Stuff is production of by Heart Radio in partnership

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<v Speaker 1>with how stuff works dot Com, and it is produced

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<v Speaker 1>by Tyler Klang. Four more podcasts from my heart Radio

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<v Speaker 1>visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

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<v Speaker 1>you listen to your favorite shows.