If you keep the interval between the first two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine a little longer, chances are your antibody levels could rise up to nine-fold, a UK study has shown. It also suggested that if you already have COVID, eight months after primary infection may be an optimal time to get the first vaccine.
The UK Health Protection Agency (UKHSA) study further states that all individuals mount a very high antibody response after the second dose, regardless of the time between infection and vaccination. The study is yet to be published.
For the study, 3,989 of 5,871 study participants received their first dose of Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at least 21 days prior, while 1,882 received their second dose at least 14 days prior.
Those with a first infection had a 10-fold increase in antibody levels compared to nave individuals, while after the second dose, antibody levels in people with a previous infection were more than twice as high as those who had not had a prior infection. .
The researchers also found that the longer the dosing interval, the higher the antibody levels.
Ashley Otter, of UK Health Security, said: “This study shows that naive participants have higher antibody responses for a longer period of time between vaccine dose 1 and dose 2, which is a response to the UK government’s decision to lengthen the interval between vaccine doses. strongly supports the decision of agency.
“We have also shown that in people with previous infection, the time between vaccination and vaccination plays an important role in post-vaccination antibody responses,” Otter said in a statement.
However, the researchers said further research is needed to determine whether these higher antibody levels confer greater protection against COVID-19 disease, and how this longer dosing interval may affect booster responses.
The research is being presented at this year’s European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) in Lisbon, Portugal, between 23-26 April. The dosing interval did not affect antibody levels in those previously infected.
However, a longer interval between infection and vaccination was associated with higher antibody levels, the researchers said.