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The start of vaccination in Germany has been slow so far, on Thursday morning the number of people vaccinated was just under 132,000, according to the Robert Koch Institute. This is mainly due to the limited availability of the preparation from Biontech and Pfizer.
To get the best possible protection against Covid-19, a second vaccination is planned every three weeks. But scientists now advocate postponing the second injection under consideration. Instead, the doses could be given to people who have not yet been vaccinated, providing at least partial protection.
“Since the interval between the two vaccines can most likely vary within wide limits, and protection is very good even after one vaccine, it is definitely worth considering giving the first vaccine first if vaccines are missing,” said Thomas Mertens, president of the permanent group. Vaccination Commission (Stiko) of the Robert Koch Institute. However, this poses an additional challenge when planning the second vaccination, which must eventually be carried out.
Bonn virologist Hendrik Streeck had made a similar statement in RTL’s “Nachtjournal.” The data showed that more than half of those vaccinated were protected from severe disease after the first vaccination. However, there must first be a discussion on this approach. “It is not an easy decision, but it would be a way to vaccinate more people quickly.”
Britain wants more people to give the first dose
Britain granted emergency approval to the vaccine from British-Swedish pharmaceutical company Astrazeneca and the University of Oxford on Wednesday. Along with the preparation of Biontech and Pfizer, the British will have two vaccines available from January.
The UK Health Ministry announced that the first dose should be given to as many people in risk groups as possible. A second dose will be vaccinated after a maximum of twelve weeks.
Peter Kremsner, director of the Institute of Tropical Medicine at the Eberhard Karls University in Tübingen, believes that the British approach is fundamentally very sensible: “If the effect of the first vaccination does not diminish rapidly over time, then the second vaccination could take place more late, for example only after six months. We don’t know yet. This is also done with other vaccines. “
In Germany, according to the recommendations of the Vaccination Commission, residents of nursing homes and old people’s homes, people over 80 years of age and medical personnel are vaccinated first.
