Coronavirus: Why are COVID vaccinated people catching COVID at a surprisingly high rate

The pace of vaccination has picked up and is being conducted in a stellar manner across the world to immunize at a fast rate. Yet, what we are increasingly seeing is a shocking rise in the number of post-vaccination COVID cases. From available anecdotal evidence, vaccinated people are alarmingly catching COVID at a shocking rate.

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The rates of breakthrough COVID cases being discovered have thrown experts to a tizzy- and left the ones who have been successfully vaccinated are facing newer worries. At this critical juncture, when we are constantly hearing of mutant COVID strains lurking around, and newer, possibly more terrifying waves emerge, it can make one wonder how safe they really are, even with a vaccine. But what’s behind this apparent, worrying rise in breakthrough infections? If so, how protective are COVID vaccines really, against complications? Here’s an explainer…

Be it through the second wave we saw in India, the rise in cases we are seeing right now, or places where the Delta variant is currently surging, there's been an alarming rise in the number of breakthrough cases detected amongst those who have been vaccinated, partially or fully. Anecdotal evidence and trends of rising positivity rates have indeed shown an evident rise in the number of people who have happened to catch COVID-19, despite being fully vaccinated.

Statistics have pointed out that the spurt in breakthrough cases, amongst those with one dose or full dosage, is very much there, even if the science says otherwise. Israel, for example, a country that had immunized a large percentage of its population (including young adults) remains one country to record the highest breakthroughs with COVID. Even while there's no scientific data available to back the same, experts predict that at this point of the pandemic, we all know of someone who had probably got sick and hence, breakthroughs with COVID-19 vaccines are quite substantial

Breakthrough cases after seeking immunization from any infection are considered a very rare occurrence and so is the case with the SARS-COV-2 virus and the vaccines we have. However, none of the vaccines currently are 100% protective, and most importantly, launched in an unprecedented timeline. Thus, even with the vaccines proving to be super effective and protective against COVID-19, there's still a higher likelihood of getting a breakthrough case.

The chances of catching post-vaccination cases are also high because of the newer variants we have since the vaccines we do have are the most clinically effective against the original variant of the virus.

At the same time, there's also another group of experts who do opine that such cases will only continue to come up and rise in the near future. As more vaccinations happen, we could potentially see a rise in these cases as well. How worrying, serious or contagious these could be, only time would tell.

Considering the high incidence of such cases, vaccinated beneficiaries can wonder how protected they really are, once they have gotten the jab.

Now, again, while what we currently have is just preliminary data on the same, effective clinical trials have actually shown that even with a lower efficacy rate, most vaccines are capable of launching a 'strong' immune response and lessen down the risk of symptomatic infections, complications, risk of hospitalization and mortality. However, there still could be some who may face the brunt of serious consequences, as new data has shown. As per the latest findings published by the CDC, there's currently little evidence to suggest that even those with the jab could end up in hospitals, with more risk for those who are partially vaccinated.

Even so, vaccinated people, those with full immunity are at the lowest risk of severe outcomes, less likely to be intubated or die from the illness. The risk of hospitalizations and death are far more concerning for those who remain unvaccinated at this point of time.

There are almost 11 COVID-19 vaccines approved or having received regulatory nods for use. While many of these vaccines work in different means and offer varying degrees of protection, it could definitely be possible that some vaccines are more effective in the long-run, or capable of evading breakthrough risks. However, since we still are in the preliminary stages of inoculation, there are no exact means to know which vaccine could be working the best. Some studies, for example, have highlighted that mRNA vaccines could be a better contender than other vaccines in lowering the risk.

Even so, there are strong talks of pushing booster shots into use, considering the waning immunity and lowering effectiveness of these vaccines. Not only does vaccine protection depend on the type of vaccine you get, but also pre-existing conditions you may have, which may limit the vaccine from doing its job.

Granted that there still are COVID-19 cases post-vaccination, can we still say that vaccines are working? Experts say yes.

Now, not only have COVID-19 vaccines achieved enormous success and acceptability in a short timeline, the vaccines are actually lowering down the risk of symptomatic illness, hospitalizations and death to a certain extent, in comparison to those who do not get the vaccine.

Vaccines have also been clinically studied to further lower down recovery timelines, the severity of symptoms (if an individual does get it), so, as worrying as getting a breakthrough case could be, vaccines can definitely tame down the risks you entail with COVID-19.

Researchers are continuing to evaluate and work on better upgraded vaccines to further minimize the risks, and chances of breakthrough infections. However, at the same time, experts stress that there's a high need for public awareness and education on post-vaccination measures and preventive tips to follow to cut down the risk. Public behaviour and individual factors such as health, immunity, compliance with measures actually go a big way in limiting the extent to which you may be at the risk of catching COVID-19, after vaccination.