Getting vaccinated improves the immune system

Without being vaccinated or having incomplete the scheme, there is a risk of suffering the disease more seriously. He recommended the use of masks, avoiding meetings, and talking closely with people.

Getting vaccinated improves the immune system
By getting vaccinated, the immune system is boosted. Photo by Mat Napo / Unsplash

People who suffered from COVID-19 in this new wave of contagion and have incomplete the vaccination scheme should be vaccinated since there is no contraindication "about any date", recommended the head of the University Commission for the Attention of the Coronavirus Emergency, Samuel Ponce de León. Once the discomfort disappears, there is no problem applying the second dose, initial scheme, or booster vaccine. There is no "rigid period that must be complied with"; waiting for 30, 60, or 90 days to pass "is not useful".

In the case of those who have been infected and have a complete vaccination schedule, they should apply the booster and the influenza vaccine because this will improve their immunological status. He warned of the risk of suffering a more symptomatic disease, with complications, of greater severity or requiring hospital care, for not having been vaccinated or having incomplete the vaccination schedule.

After suffering from COVID-19 there is a clinical picture that can present itself in a variable percentage of the population, and it will surely change from one variant to another, if the populations are vaccinated or not if the vaccination schedules are complete, or if there are boosters, the university professor pointed out.  In situations of prolonged COVID-19, symptoms are present for four to six weeks. Post-COVID syndrome can appear weeks after the symptoms have resolved. Its clinical manifestation is described as chronic and intense fatigue, tiredness, some headache, and musculoskeletal pain, which can be persistent and difficult to resolve.

Because of the intensity of transmission of the omicron variant, the most advisable thing to do is to avoid meetings, crowds, and talking to people nearby, as well as to always use mouth covers in the correct way (three-layer fabric, well-fitting, or some other). Due to the omicron variant, a significant number of infections are expected in the following weeks. Thanks to vaccination during the fourth wave of SARS-CoV-2, the situation is not much more compromised in terms of hospital demand and with a significant increase, already now, in mortality.

Over time, the interaction between the virus will continue to change and our species will improve its overall immunity, and a stable level of infection or "endemic pattern" will be maintained, with increases at some time of the year. Perhaps it will be in winter and reinforcements or new vaccination schedules will be necessary periodically. In Mexico, the health authority has announced that two new antivirals have been approved, one for "very early use" in the course of infection. However, it has not yet been determined how it will be applied nor the distribution scheme, possibly in the hospital institutions of the health sector and there will also be available for sale in pharmacies.

It is going to be an extraordinarily useful tool to be used with medical guidance, under the circumstances that foresee its best efficacy. For Mexico, it is desirable to have its production of vaccines for our program in this area. The urgency at this moment is, obviously, COVID-19 and influenza. Hopefully, the current situation will stimulate significant investment to develop sufficient production areas for the generation of these biologics. At least Latin America, in a regional interaction, should have this biological production capacity to meet its vaccination needs.

Regarding COVID-19, there is a partial production of the vaccine by AstraZeneca in collaboration with a private laboratory in Argentina, and in Mexico with the Liomont laboratory. In Mexico, the Patria vaccine is at an advanced stage, which has been generated in its entirety (from conception to production) Mexico. UNAM collaborates in this project with the Avimex laboratory. Some phase two analysis remains to be completed before moving on to phase three. Eventually, the Patria vaccine will be available, which will serve as a booster for all vaccination schedules. In the medium and long term, it may be used for revaccination.