Since the protective effect of the corona vaccination decreases over time, all people over the age of 18 should receive a booster or booster vaccination. You can find out here whether this should actually only take place after 6 months or whether an earlier booster is even possible and sensible.
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Booster vaccination: After 6 months or earlier?
As protection against the coronavirus gradually decreases in the months following full vaccination , experts agree that a third booster dose is necessary. The Standing Vaccination Committee (STIKO) of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) recommends “ the COVID-19 booster vaccination for all people aged 18 and over”. Medical and nursing staff, the elderly and people with an immune deficiency or other previous illnesses should be given preferential boosting. However, all other people can already try to make an appointment for the booster vaccination.
But when should the booster vaccination take place? Actually only after 6 months or are earlier refresher courses possible and sensible? According to STIKO , the booster vaccination should “usually be given 6 months after the last vaccine dose of the basic immunization. Shortening the vaccination interval to 5 months can be considered in individual cases or if there is sufficient capacity.” If you have already received an appointment before the end of your 6 months, there is nothing to be said against getting vaccinated again after 5 months. That’s how Sandra Ciesek , head of the Institute for Medical Virology at the University Hospital in Frankfurt, sees it. In the current episode of Corona virus updates from NDR Info says the virologist: “I don’t see a problem there. If you vaccinate after 5 months or after 6 months, it doesn’t make much of a difference. Only after 2 or 3 months is the question: Does that make a difference? And there’s just no data on that. But these 5 months or 6 months, it doesn’t matter at all .”
How much vaccination protection is still available after 6 months?
Since the vaccines and the necessary staff are limited, many vaccination centers and family doctor’s practices currently still have the restriction that a booster vaccination may only be given six months after the basic immunization at the earliest – unless you belong to a risk group. As a result, many people who would like to get their booster but have been vaccinated four or five months ago are very concerned about whether they are still adequately vaccinated. In this regard, we can reassure you: Even after six months, there is still an extremely high level of vaccination protection – at least in the case of younger people under the age of 60. The experts from have looked at the current studies and results: According to this, the effectiveness of the vaccines istwo months after the basic immunization still 96.2 percent. Between the fourth and sixth month after full vaccination, vaccination protection still averages 83.7 percent . It is also important that this is only about protection against infection with Covid-19. According to the RKI , protection against severe courses is still almost as high after six months as immediately after successful basic immunization: “Immunically healthy people are still well protected against serious COVID-19 diseases at least 6 months after completing the basic immunization” .
What vaccines are used for boosters?
The booster vaccinations are currently carried out exclusively with the mRNA vaccines from Biontech/Pfizer and Moderna. As a rule, the same vaccine is used as for the basic immunization – however, according to the current status, there is nothing to prevent the use of the other vaccine. According to the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI), the two vaccines are equivalent. Younger people between the ages of 18 and 29 and pregnant women from the second trimester should be boosted with the vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer according to the STIKO recommendation.
Booster vaccination: Do vaccination reactions and side effects occur?
Vaccination reactions within the tolerable range are not unusual or alarming, even after the booster vaccination. According to current data, possible vaccination reactions and side effects after the mRNA booster occur in a similar manner and frequency as after the primary immunization. You should therefore protect your immune system before and after the booster vaccination in the same way as after the first two vaccinations.
Is an antibody test necessary before the booster vaccination?
The Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) recently caused confusion with a statement about antibody tests before the booster vaccination: “It makes sense that everyone does an antibody test,” said Söder after a cabinet meeting in Munich. It is understandable that many citizens are now wondering whether determining the so-called antibody titer is really useful and necessary – especially since the tests can cost 20 euros or more. However, numerous experts vehemently contradict Söder’s statement, including the Professional Association of German Laboratory Doctors (BDL) and the Bavarian Association of General Practitioners (BHÄV)., since there are no fixed values that can confirm or exclude complete vaccination protection. The virologist Sandra Ciesek also emphasizes the limited significance of the value in the coronavirus update : “It actually only makes sense for people with immunosuppression to see whether they have responded to the vaccination at all and whether they have formed antibodies” .
