SANTA CRUZ — Though none of the three main variants detected outside of the U.S. and slowly emerging into its borders have reached Santa Cruz County yet, the currently available vaccines will help block against the severe disease they can cause.
UC Santa Cruz Professor Rebecca DuBois told the Sentinel that a lot of data has been coming out in recent weeks suggesting that the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines still protect individuals from COVID-19, even if it appears in the form of its variants.
There is a little bit more data from vaccines that are still in clinical trials, such as Johnson and Johnson, because they are being tested in the wake of variant strands appearing. This data suggests the established vaccines may have a slightly reduced efficacy against what DuBois called the three main variants: that detected in the UK, that detected in South Africa and that detected in Brazil.
“There is not a lot of information yet but what I can say is that if you look at the antibodies, they still neutralize and block infection in the lab,” DuBois said. “It’s still effective.”
These variants have some overlapping mutations and some differing mutations; generally, there are hundreds of strains of the virus, but these are the ones of concern, the professor said.
There is no evidence that the newly circulating variants, contracted in nearby jurisdictions like Alameda County, are any more deadly than the virus Santa Cruz residents have come to know.
“(The variants) have spread faster in the countries where they have emerged where they’ve been the dominant strain,” DuBois said. “Scientists believe that they will become the dominant strain in the U.S. by March.”
A race against a raging virus
With this knowledge, it’s that much more critical for people to get vaccinated when they are eligible to do so, DuBois explained.
“It’s effectively a race to vaccinate as many people as we can to try to minimize the emergence and spread of variants in the U.S.,” she said. “The more people we get vaccinated, the more we can minimize that.”
Above all else, DuBois sought to nix vaccine hesitancy of any kind.
“I try to let them know about the facts of safety and rigor in which FDA-approved vaccines were tested,” she said. “…Vaccine production was accelerated in Operation Warp Speed but the clinical trials themselves, the rigor put into those trials, was exactly the same as you’d (expect) from any other (trial). There were no shortcuts in order to test the safety, the efficacy.”
In terms of side effects, it’s a game of short-term pain for long-term gain for the millions that have been vaccinated all over the globe. DuBois confirmed she, like the Sentinel, had heard more people were reporting symptoms after the second coronavirus vaccine shot, but that was observed and noted in clinical trials too.
“That kind of reaction is short-lived, it’s not concerning. It’s a sign that your immune system is working to respond to the vaccine,” DuBois said of adverse effects like a sore arm or a low-grade fever.
DuBois said scientists and vaccine developers erred on the side of a robust immune response and looked for a “sure thing” to provide protection, so more discomfort from the vaccine may be tolerated for those receiving them than, say, a flu shot.
“Maybe the dose could have been reduced a little bit and we would see less of that… but it was a ‘we really have one shot to get it’ kind of thing,” DuBois said. “The number one goal of the vaccination campaign is one to reduce spread in the community but also to relieve the healthcare system and reduce severe disease and death for people. (The vaccines) are expected to fully continue to work for that.”
Hospitals are seeing relief, as Santa Cruz County’s last rolling 14-day average for COVID-19 ICU hospitalized patients sits at 10 when just weeks ago it sat at 17. The total number of COVID-19 hospitalized patients in the county has been cut in half in the last month. Available ICU beds are also on the rise this week, matching numbers from October — prior to the “surge on surge on surge” – for the first time. The county’s active known cases continue to decrease, as 94 fewer active cases were reported Tuesday than Monday.
But now is not the time to let up. Other than signing up for state and health provider alerts around vaccines, DuBois advised continued diligence of safety precautions such as mask-wearing and social distancing.
“Thankfully cases are going down, but we are not even where we were in late summer,” she said.
The coronavirus statistics on the county’s data dashboard add legitimacy to DuBois’ thought; while the daily new case rate is dropping, it still regularly exceeds that figure from the first “surge” after the Fourth of July.
In addition, the county continues to report deaths; today it hit a landmark of 160 COVID-related deaths. The latest fatality was a white man in his 70s with no underlying health conditions that would have contributed to his death, screenshots of the “known deaths” table from Monday to Tuesday indicate. He was a resident of a congregate living facility.
By the numbers
Total cases: 14,055
Active cases: 1,146
Recoveries: 12,749
Deaths: 160
Current ICU hospitalizations: 10
Hospitalizations: 407
Open ICU beds: 11
Negative tests: 111,387
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February 10, 2021 at 07:16AM
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Current vaccines will aid against variant forms of COVID-19, UCSC professor says - Santa Cruz Sentinel
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