Covid-19 induced deaths reduced by 90 per cent, thanks to third booster dose 

There is no denying that Covid-19 induced deaths have now lowered significantly and thankfully so. But have you ever wondered why that happened? Yes, because of mass vaccination drive worldwide. However, a recent study suggests that global rate of fatality due to the novel coronavirus reduced by 90 percent due to the third booster dose as against two normal doses. This includes decreased deaths in people have co-morbidity issues and various underlying medical conditions.  

The study was published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal by researchers based at the University of Hong Kong. It used data from individuals aged 18 years or above and having two or more chronic ailments, be it hypertension, kidney disease, diabetes or heart related disease. These were the ones who received a third “booster” shot between November 2021 and March 2022 and showed better immunisation in comparison to people with similar conditions but who only took one or two normal doses.  

The booster doses that had a visible positive impact include that of BNT162b2, an mRNA vaccine, or CoronaVac, an inactivated whole-virus vaccine. This proves that third booster vaccines of two distinct technological platforms have largely contributed in lowering mortality among people with multimorbidity issues. This especially proved useful during the Omicron surge.   

Wondering why the Hong Kong-based researchers suddenly conducted this study? Well, to find out more about how and why did the Omicron BA.2 variant that had hit their country in the end of 2021 led to the highest Covid-19 induced mortality rate worldwide and threatened their 7.5 million population. Understandably, the scientists were eager to know how they can avoid similar instances in the future if history were to repeat itself.  

For those unaware, November 2021 onwards, senior citizens, medical professionals and other priority groups such as the army, police, firefighters and NGO workers were given booster doses. They were either Pfizer BioNTech (BNT162b2 mRNA type) or Sinovac (CoronaVac type) and were delivered all across the globe including India. Since 2022, all adults became eligible for the same and within the first four months, as many as 3 million people received booster doses worldwide.  

Experts suggest that this on-time, wide scale public health measure has played a significant role in lowering the mortality rate among the global population, including the ones fighting with common terminal diseases.  

Interestingly, as many as 120,724 people’s data were used as part of the study. Among them, 87,289 received the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine booster shot, while the rest received Sinovac. The recipients of the former were more likely to combat death than the latter, the study revealed.  

The findings of the study thus put emphasis on how massive booster vaccination goes a long way in securing the lives of vulnerable population.