A new serological study has found that participants who have received the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine have developed 6-20 times more antibodies for the pathogen, Sheba Medical Center said in a statement on Monday.
The survey, which reviewed data from 102 of about 1,000 of the hospital's personnel who have received both shots, showed that only two subjects have developed low amounts of antibodies - one of the subjects suffered from a compromised immune system.
2 View gallery
Vials of Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer
(Photo: AFP)
The rest of the subjects have developed more antibodies than patients who recovered from the disease.
“The results of the survey are consistent with Pfizer’s experiment and even exceeded expectations,” Director of the Infection Prevention and Control Unit at Sheba Medical Center and editor of the survey Prof. Gili Regev-Yohai said. "I expect that the survey results of the other employees participating in it will be similar. There is definitely reason for optimism."
Regev-Yohai also added that people who received both doses of the vaccine will most likely not become carriers of the virus and will not spread it further due to the high level of antibodies.
2 View gallery
Medical teams getting vaccinated against COVID-19 at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer
(Photo: Yariv Katz)
As of Monday, Sheba Medical Center, situated in Ramat Gan, has vaccinated some 80 percent of its employees with the first dose - a total of 7,106 individuals - and 4,484 with the booster shot.
The Jewish state leads the world in inoculations per capita, having exceeded the two million mark over the weekend.