Dr Shrushti Halari
Mumbai: A 26-year-old Mulund-based doctor has tested positive for Covid-19 three times since June 2020, twice after she got vaccinated earlier this year, reports Malathy Iyer. “The reinfections are confusing,” said Dr Shrushti Halari, whose swab samples have been collected for genome sequencing as part of a citywide study on breakthrough infections (occurring after a person is vaccinated).
While there are no clear answers for why the doctor got Covid thrice, doctors told TOI that the reasons could range from SARS2 variants to her immunity levels to an incorrect diagnostic report (though RT-PCR is the gold standard for Covid-19 testing, it has a sensitivity of around 70%-75%).
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MUMBAI: India may have decided to stick to the 28-day gap between two shots of Covishield, but there is growing evidence that a gap of almost three months would be better. In a study published in the Lancet, researchers from the University of Oxford, where Covishield was developed, said a 3-month interval between the doses results in a higher vaccine efficacy than a six-week interval, reports Malathy Iyer.
The first dose offers 76% protection for up to 3 months, said the study. Many local doctors, too, had raised the “better antibody levels with longer gap” theory with the Centre.
“We believe a gap of two months should be provided between the two shots,” said Dr Shashank Joshi, who is a member of the Maharashtra Covid task force.