With input from Dr Monica Vasudev

1490: Anthony Fauci director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, stated that while it is not known what the magical point of herd immunity is, but if a major proportion of the population is vaccinated, it will be good. He added that children will have to be in that mix. He estimated that 70-85% of the population would need to be vaccinated or immune in order to attain herd immunity. (WebMD)

1491: Amid concerns about thromboembolic events reported in people in European Union (EU) after receiving AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, the executive director of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said that the benefit to risk ratio was positive for the vaccine, adding that Europeans should continue to take the vaccine. (Medscape)

1492: In a study published by Lancet EClinicalMedicine, sebum samples were obtained from 67 hospitalized patients, 30 of whom were COVID-19 positive and 37 were negative. Lipidomics analysis detected 998 reproducible features. Lipid levels were depressed in COVID-19-positive individuals, suggesting dyslipidemia. (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(21)00066-3/fulltext)

1493: Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) seem to have about a 30% increased risk for COVID-19 compared with women without PCOS, even after adjustment for cardiometabolic and other related factors, reported an analysis of United Kingdom primary care data. (Medscape)

1494: Antibodies induced by the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines appear to be considerably less effective when it comes to neutralizing certain variants. A new study collected blood samples from 99 people who had been given one or two doses of either vaccine and evaluated the vaccine-induced antibodies against engineered virus that mimic 10 variants circulating across the globe. Five out of the ten variants were highly resistant to neutralization, even when the study participants had received both doses of the vaccines, reported researchers in Cell. All of the five highly resistant variants had mutations in the spike [K417N/T, E484K, and N501Y]. The proportion of neutralizing antibodies was found to decline 5- to 6-times against the variants discovered in Brazil. Neutralization declined 20- to 44-fold against the variant discovered in South Africa. It appears that vaccine-induced antibodies may find it harder to neutralize variants with E484K. (Reuters)

1495: A new study suggests that older individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 cannot assume that they have immunity against a second attack. The study suggests that those below the age of 65 are less prone to reinfection. The study, conducted in Denmark, noted that those below 65 had nearly 80% protection for at least six months against contracting COVID a second time. Contrary to that, those above 65 had only 47% protection. Authors of the study, published in the Lancet, say that it is important to take measures to protect elderly people, who also have an increased likelihood of death from COVID-19. The study confirms previous findings that reinfection is rare in younger, healthy people, but the elderly have a higher risk of catching the infection again. (The Guardian)

1496: Students can now safely sit 3 feet apart in classrooms if they wear masks, suggest the more relaxed school guidelines released by the CDC. The recommended distance between students has been reduced from 6 feet, except for common-area events like assemblies, sporting events, and lunch.

According to the new recommendations, students should:

• Stay at least 3 feet apart in elementary classrooms where they wear masks, irrespective of whether community transmission is low, moderate, substantial, or high.
• Stay at least 3 feet apart in middle and high schools in communities where the transmission level is not high. However, in high-transmission areas, the distance should be at least 6 feet.
• Stay 6 feet apart in middle and high schools where is not possible.

COVID-19 is transmitted more likely among older students. Therefore, the CDC recommends that middle and high school students should remain 6 feet apart in communities where the risk is high, unless the students can cohort. (WebMD)

Dr KK Aggarwal

President CMAAO, HCFI and Past National President IMA