Corona current
How well do the vaccines protect against the Delta variant?
© Benito Juncal / Shutterstock
The corona vaccinations are in full swing – but the delta version of the virus worries many. How well do the vaccines protect against it?
Thanks to the corona vaccinations, which are now making good progress, many people actually hoped that we would soon have the disease under control and that this year’s summer vacation would no longer have to fall flat. But above all the news from England worries: The corona lockdown was extended there because of the delta variant of the virus that appeared for the first time in India. And in this country too, the number of new infections with Delta has more than doubled in just one week. This now raises the question: How well do the current corona vaccines protect against the delta variant?
Initial studies indicate good effectiveness at Biontech / Pfizer
According to the first available data, the vaccines seem by and large to be able to at least significantly reduce the risk of serious illness from the delta variant. For example, Pfizer Medical Director Alon Rappaport said on Israel Army Radio, that the Biontech / Pfizer vaccine can prevent infection with the Delta variant by around 90 percent.
The British health authority Public Health England (PHE) agrees with this assessment: The vaccine can prevent severe disease courses from the Delta variant just as well as the Alpha variant. Those who are vaccinated with the two intended doses are therefore 96 percent protected from to have to be hospitalized because of a serious illness.
The vaccine from Biontech / Pfizer also performs well with a milder infection. The British health authority published a study at the end of May, according to which the vaccine has an effectiveness of 88 percent against symptomatic illness with the Delta variant two weeks after the second dose. The vaccine is 93 percent effective against the alpha variant.
How is AstraZeneca’s vaccine performing?
The PHE has also carried out a new study on the AstraZeneca vaccine. A full vaccination with two doses of vaccine generally reduces the risk of a serious illness with COVID-19 by up to 92 percent. The effectiveness against the delta variant is around 60 percent, against the alpha variant the vaccine is 66 percent effective.
How effective are the Johnson & Johnson and Moderna vaccines?
There are currently no reliable data available for the vaccine from Johnson & Johnson with regard to its effectiveness against the new Delta variant. However, this is currently being investigated. There is still no clear evidence of the Moderna vaccine either. However, the vaccine is based on the same mRNA technology as that from Biontech / Pfizer. In an interview with the Washington Post, Anthony Fauci, who works as an immunologist and medical advisor to US President Joe Biden, was therefore confident that that the Moderna vaccine could also protect against the Delta variant as well.
Sources used: Washington Post, N-TV.de, rtl.de