April 20, 2024

COVID-19 Vaccines May Be Significantly Less Effective in People With Severe Obesity

New research study suggests that grownups with extreme weight problems generate a s considerably weaker immune action to COVID-19 vaccination compared to those with typical weight.
Research study suggests serious obesity blunts antibody reaction to COVID-19 vaccines.
Pfizer/BioNTech linked to a more robust antibody response than CoronaVac in individuals with severe weight problems.
New research recommends that grownups (aged 18 or older) with serious obesity generate a substantially weaker immune action to COVID-19 vaccination compared to those with typical weight. The study was conducted by Professor Volkan Demirhan Yumuk from Istanbul University in Turkey and colleagues and existed at this years European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Maastricht, Netherlands (May 4-7).
The study likewise found that people with extreme weight problems (BMI of more than 40kg/m2) vaccinated with Pfizer/BioNTech BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine produced substantially more antibodies than those vaccinated with CoronaVac (inactivated SARS– CoV– 2) vaccine, suggesting that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine might be a better choice for this vulnerable population.

” These results provide brand-new information on the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in individuals with serious obesity and enhance the significance of focusing on and increasing vaccine uptake in this susceptible group,” says Professor Yumuk. “Our study validates that immune memory induced by prior infection modifies the method in which individuals react to vaccination and indicates that two doses of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine may produce substantially more antibodies than CoronaVac in individuals with severe obesity, regardless of infection history. Additional research is required to determine whether these greater antibody levels provide higher protection against COVID-19.”

Obesity is an illness making complex the course of COVID-19, and the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine antibody reaction in adults with obesity might be compromised. Vaccines against influenza, liver disease B, and rabies, have shown reduced responses in individuals with obesity.
To learn more, scientists examined antibody actions following Pfizer/BioNTech and CoronaVac vaccination in 124 adults (average age 42-63 years) with serious obesity who checked out the Obesity Center at Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty Hospitals, between August and November 2021. They also hired a control group of 166 typical weight adults (BMI less than 25kg/m2, typical age 39-47 years) who were going to the Cerrahpasa Hospitals Vaccination Unit.
Researchers determined antibody levels in blood samples drawn from patients and typical weight controls who had gotten 2 dosages of either the Pfizer/BioNTech or CoronaVac vaccine and had their second dose 4 weeks previously. The individuals were categorized by infection history as either formerly having COVID-19 or not (verified by their antibody profile).
In general, 130 individuals received 2 doses of Pfizer/BioNTech and 160 participants 2 doses of CoronaVac, of whom 70 had previous SARS-CoV-2 infection (see tables in notes to editors).
In those without previous SARS-CoV-2 infection and immunized with Pfizer/BioNTech, clients with severe obesity had antibody levels more than three times lower than normal weight controls (average 5,823 vs 19,371 AU/ml).
Similarly, in individuals without any prior SARS-CoV-2 infection and immunized with CoronaVac, clients with severe obesity had antibody levels 27 times lower than normal weight controls (average 178 vs 4,894 AU/ml).
Nevertheless, in those with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, antibody levels in patients with severe weight problems and immunized with Pfizer/BioNTech or CoronaVac were not significantly different from typical weight controls (average 39,043 vs 14,115 AU/ml and 3,221 vs 7,060 AU/ml, respectively).
Interestingly, the analyses discovered that in patients with serious obesity, with and without previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, antibody levels in those vaccinated with Pfizer/BioNTech were substantially greater than those immunized with CoronaVac.
” These outcomes offer brand-new details on the antibody reaction to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in individuals with extreme weight problems and enhance the value of increasing and prioritizing vaccine uptake in this susceptible group,” says Professor Yumuk. “Our research study confirms that immune memory caused by prior infection modifies the method which individuals react to vaccination and suggests that 2 dosages of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine may produce substantially more antibodies than CoronaVac in people with extreme obesity, regardless of infection history. Nevertheless, additional research study is required to identify whether these higher antibody levels supply higher protection against COVID-19.”