NEW ORLEANS — We've been hearing from some of you asking, “Why get a COVID vaccine if it doesn't work against the Omicron variant.”
So what is the science behind breakthrough cases and what does and doesn’t work?
First, here's where you can find the latest vaccine science. Type in Google Scholar. Click on that search engine then type in the topic you're looking for. You'll have access to the first-hand, scientific studies that are not filtered through websites with an agenda, social media, or even rewritten by a journalist.
Look for large studies from:
JOURNALS
- Nature
- Science
- Cell
- New England of Medicine
“Those are high prestigious reputable journals that are going to be rigorously peer reviewed, and they're going to require very rigorous experimental design, and statistical analysis to publish,” said Tulane Vaccinologist Dr. Lisa Morici.
And in those studies, Dr. Morici says you will find details about people with just two doses of the COVID vaccine.
“What we're seeing is that after two doses of vaccine, you see very little neutralizing activity against Omicron.”
It's still protective against serious cases, but this is why there are Omicron breakthrough cases after only two doses. Your antibodies wane over time. The same thing happens with other vaccines, it's just that Omicron is everywhere around you, whereas polio and measles germs aren't.
Now with dose three, the booster, science is showing it works.
“You have a much better chance of preventing infection with Omicron and transmission from you to another individual with Omicron, because even if you do get a breakthrough infection, you're going to clear it faster,” she said.
So the booster is helping prevent breakthrough cases.
“We're seeing 70, 80 percent effectiveness, depending on the studies that you look at, which is just, it really is mind blowing at how well the vaccines are working, against a very, very highly contagious variant like Omicron.”
So read the scientific studies of large population. The unvaccinated, are still at much higher risk of catching Omicron, spreading it, going to the hospital, and dying.
And the doctor says the Omicron variant can become infectious soon after you catch it, whereas other infections, such as the measles, may take a couple of weeks.