The Public Health Commission, in which all the autonomous communities and the Ministry of Health are represented, today agreed to extend the interval between the first and second doses of AstraZeneca from 12 to 16 weeks for people under 60 who have already received the first one. Expanding the interval will allow more information to be made available in order to make a decision that guarantees the safety of the vaccination, taking into account the best available knowledge, they say.
Thus, the published pharmacovigilance data on the use of the second dose of AZ in this age group and the new evidence on the use of a different vaccine for those who have received the first dose of AZ can be reviewed. In addition, the results of the Oxford University dose interchangeability study and other clinical trials such as the one initiated in Spain by the ISCIII will be available.
Spain, like Ireland, and following the precautionary principle, thus opts to wait for more information on the studies in progress and the experience of other countries. The Federation of Spanish Scientific Medical Associations (FACME), a national organisation that brings together 46 scientific-medical societies, supports this decision.
Effectiveness and immunity
It should be remembered that the protection reaches around 80% effectiveness with the first dose and therefore, the Public Health Commission want to send a message of tranquillity to people under 60 who are waiting to receive their second dose.
In addition, as stated in Update 6 of the Vaccine Strategy, people who have received a first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine and have had the COVID-19 disease, should not receive a second dose. Your guideline is considered complete.
To highlight that people under 60 years of age have a lower risk of serious disease and the priority at this time is to vaccinate those over 60 years of age as soon as possible to avoid hospitalisations and deaths in an epidemiological situation of accumulated incidences on the rise.
The important thing, be vaccinated
The Public Health Commission has also shown that at this time the most important thing is to get vaccinated, that all vaccines are safe in the groups for which they are indicated. All vaccines are effective and prevent hospitalisation and death. The important thing is to be vaccinated. Not getting vaccinated can mean passing the disease with the risks that this entails.
It should also be remembered that in the meantime all people vaccinated or not should continue to maintain the 6 most important preventive measures (6 Ms): Distance metres, Mask, Hands, More ventilation and outdoor spaces, Minimize number of contacts (bubble), stay home if I have symptoms or diagnosed with COVID-19, waiting for a test result, or in close contact with a case.
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