Results of a clinical trial out of Israel show a fourth COVID-19 vaccine shot provides only limited protection against the omicron variant.
Sheba Hospital said on Monday that preliminary findings indicate a fourth dose provides only “partial defense” against the strain, which has shown to be more transmissible while causing less severe illness. However, the shot does increase antibody levels.
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Dr. Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the hospital’s infection disease unit, told reporters the fourth vaccine was “not good enough” to provide complete protection against infection from the omicron variant.
“The vaccines, which were more effective against previous variants, offer less protection versus omicron,” Regev-Yochay said.
Last month, the hospital began administering a fourth dose to more than 270 medical workers, 154 of which received a Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and 120 received Moderna. All who participated had previously been triple-vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
The trial found that both groups who received a fourth vaccine dose had “slightly higher” antibodies than after their third, but it did not prevent the spread of omicron, as reported by the Associated Press.
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Israel was the first to announce the rollout of a fourth dose for those 60 and older, immunocompromised individuals, and medical workers in late December. As of Sunday, over 500,000 have already received their fourth shot, according to the Times of Israel.
