Health Care

“Prof. Kulkanya, M.D.” clarified doubts about COVID-19 XBB.1.16 recommending vaccination to boost immunity

April 19, 2023Fact Check by Peerapol Anutarasoth and Saowapak RattanaphongAs information about COVID-19 is shared New strain XBB .1.16 claimed to be from Prof. Kunkanya Chokpaiboonkit, M.D.Sure, before sharing, check with Prof. Kulkanya. Chokpaiboonkit...

April 19, 2023

Fact Check by Peerapol Anutarasoth and Saowapak Rattanaphong

As information about COVID-19 is shared New strain XBB .1.16 claimed to be from Prof. Kunkanya Chokpaiboonkit, M.D.

Sure, before sharing, check with Prof. Kulkanya. Chokpaiboonkit It has been confirmed that it is a real written text. It is written and sent to a friend who has questions about the XBB.1.16 virus and has asked a lot at the moment.

shared message

April 19, 2023

In the past two days, it has been Questions from many people about the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak.

– It’s back again, isn’t it?

-Is the new species XBB .1.16 more scary? Is it more intense than before? And drug resistance already?

– Will we have to vaccinate again? I have injected many needles.

– What kind of vaccine to use?

– When should I inject?

– Will the vaccine protect against new strains?

-Is the Immunosuppressant (LAAB, Evusheld) still working or not?

So let’s collect these doubts to answer the question. which I think might be useful

-First of all, I have to say that the COVID-19 disease will stay with humanity forever and will continue to mutate. And every time they mutate, a strain is created that escapes the immunity created by a vaccine or a previous infection. Because only species that mutate and dodge immunity will survive. and will eventually replace the original species

In fact, Omicron strain BA.2.75 has been around for quite a long time. But when a large number of people are infected with this strain New strains that evade immunity will take their place. In this case, it is the XBB family, with the latest outbreak in America being XBB.1.5 and the one being outbreak in India being XBB.1.16, which studies have shown that it divides better than before. and is expected to enter Thailand and rapidly spread Especially during the Songkran festival, having fun, meeting many people close There is a high chance that tourists bring in the virus from abroad. Because our caution in infection is getting less and the last dose of vaccination. Most of them have been abandoned for more than 3-4 months.

-In fact, all the XBB strains and all the previous Omicron strains did not become more virulent. and did not resist any medication but resistant to ready-made immunity, however, all Omicron strains The likelihood is severe for the 608 risk group, especially those who have never received the vaccine or received less than three doses. General people who have received multiple doses of vaccination if left behind for more than 3-4 months, the level of immunity from the vaccine or from previous infection. It will naturally decrease, giving you a chance to get infected, but it’s usually mild.

– repeat vaccination It increases immunity across to mutant strains well. Although the vaccine is not completely protective. But it effectively reduces violence regardless of the species. Vaccines are effective either older (monovalent) or newer (bivalent). We now have bivalent BA.1 (Pfizer) and bivalent BA.4/5 (Moderna) in small quantities that may not be distributed. everywhere

It is true that bivalent vaccines induce higher immunity and protect against disease from newer mutant strains than older vaccines, but by the time the immune level has started to fall, injection No matter what kind of vaccine, it’s definitely better than no injection.

-Because COVID-19 will become a seasonal disease like the flu. Including almost all people are already immune from past vaccination or have been infected. Therefore, there are guidelines to adjust the vaccination. as an annual booster injection Once a year like the flu It should be injected before the rainy season, which is the season where there will be an outbreak of viruses, both influenza and COVID-19, which in the rhythm of April to June is the time when the annual vaccination is very appropriate.

When an opportunity arises, it should be injected immediately because “Pre-injection, prevention first” should be at least 3 months away from the last dose or last infection. You can use any vaccine, if you get a new version, the better. But the old version can still be used. Otherwise, it will be missed if the disease is gone first. (Even if the disease is not severe in those who have been vaccinated several times. But I don’t want it to be the same because having to stop working and being sick, there is a chance of complications)

– At the moment, both influenza and COVID 19 are going viral together and have no different symptoms. If both diseases are present at the same time, the symptoms will be more severe than if there is only one disease. Therefore, it is recommended that vaccination against both COVID-19 and influenza should be performed at the same time. Or how many days apart can be injected? There are no contraindications at all.

– Treatment remains the same, but Instant Immunity no longer works if it’s XBB, but it’s still effective now. because part of it is still the original strain BA.2.75

Let me summarize the answer to the question briefly.

-It’s back again, isn’t it?….

It never left, just calmed down for a while and yes. Now it’s coming into a new wave. Especially in the rainy season as well

-Is the new species XBB .1.16 more scary? Has it become more severe and resistant to drugs?…

Not more severe, not more resistant than before, but there have been reports of more red eye symptoms, especially in children. and treatment remains the same No more resistance to antiviral drugs

– I have injected several needles. Will we have to vaccinate again?

should be injected if the last dose is more than 3-4 months because the XBB strain is quite good at sheltering the landscape shorten the efficiency of the original immunity

Don’t be bored with vaccines at all because in the end we have to get a booster once a year. No need to count the number of past needles (very high-risk groups should consider injecting twice a year)

– What kind of vaccine to use? When should I inject?…..

The new version is about 30% better than the old one, but both work well. And the overall picture of disease prevention is not much different. When it’s time to inject something, just inject something like that. And regardless of which model, the immunity will fall over time.

– Will the vaccine protect against new strains?….

Answer: Yes, the protection efficiency is about 60-80%, especially when injected with many needles. And well protected during 3-4 months after injection, although not 100% preventable, but greatly reducing the severity which is very important for risk groups 608

– Ready-made immunity (LAAB, Evusheld) still works or not?…..

Now it still has some effect, but if in the future the XBB strain almost completely replaces it, the ready-made immunity will not be effective.

Emphasize that effective protection It is still wearing a mask when meeting a lot of people, washing hands and keeping distance. May everyone be safe from COVID-19.

Dr. Kunkanya Chokpaiboonkit, M.D.

April 19, 2023

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Source: Thai News Agency