Can Sinovac protect Indonesia from Omicron waves? | | Coronavirus Plague News

As the third wave of the pandemic begins to spread in Indonesia, there are questions about the use of Chinese Sinovac, following extensive research showing that the COVID-19 vaccine used in Southeast Asia may not be the same as the Omicron. of the corona virus.

On Friday, the country filed 32,211 cases of confirmed COVID-19, the highest number since the Delta waves began to disappear within August.

The prevalence of the tested population reached 10.29 percent on the same day, pushing Indonesia to exceed the 5 percent target that WHO uses to identify countries that have failed to control the virus.

According to the Indonesian Ministry of Health, only 45.9 percent of the 208 million people infected with the vaccine are fully vaccinated worldwide compared to about 53.4 percent worldwide.

Vaccination rates have slowed since the beginning of the year when many states and territories refuse to use a vaccine other than Sinovac due to concerns about the effects of Western-made vaccines, and concerns that Omicron waves may be recurring. of the second Delta-driven wave, which saw the medical system collapse.

Research raises suspicions

In December, researchers at University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong published a study that found that two levels of Sinovac did not produce enough antibodies to attack Omicron.

The study also showed that Omicron significantly reduced dual exposure to the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, which is based on the new technology of Messenger RNA (mRNA), which uses the coronavirus gene to trick the body into making viral proteins for the immune system. the system begins to generate security response. But research has shown that Pfizer booster may be more effective than Sinovac third dose.

Another study published by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and published in journals Emerging Microbes & Infections in the same month he showed a “significant decrease” in the effectiveness of the stimulant by Sinopharm, which, like Sinovac, is an inactivated vaccine that uses small particles of dead antibodies to express its immune response to COVID-19. “Overall, our research shows that Omicron is able to escape vaccinated immunity compared with prototypes and other stressors,” the authors concluded.

And a study by Yale University and the Ministry of Health in the Dominican Republic published last month in a journal Natural Medicine did not show antibodies to interactions between those who received two Sinovac shots.

“Our findings are relevant to a number of countries that have previously used two CoronaVac methods,” the authors said, using another Sinovac name.

China’s return is closed as it faces a major epidemic since the outbreak and their rush to develop mRNA vaccines is raising concerns about the effectiveness of vaccines in developing countries such as Indonesia which rely on Chinese vaccines and are unable to shut down. . Then there is the Singapore announcement in January that people who have chosen a Chinese vaccine that has not been used will need to receive a mRNA shot as an incentive to be considered vaccinated.

Larger cases, fewer legal ones

An epidemic specialist who predicted Indonesia killer of the second wave In a report published by Al Jazeera a month earlier, Dr Dicky Budiman believes the country will see 300,000 to 500,000 cases a day by the end of this month.

“Daily lawsuits will be 10 times worse than the second wave but in the case of hospitals, it will only be half as bad,” Budiman said. “The risk of death may also be low but I can’t guarantee because Sinovac will not be able to destroy Omicron compared to the messenger RNA vaccine.”

A health worker talks to the mother alone about her encounter with the Omicron brand. The waves are expected to rise later this month in Indonesia [File: Adi Weda/EPA]

Interestingly, the increase in the number of diseases that spread during the second period will lend Indonesians greater protection, he added.

“I do not agree with the term ‘high level of protection’ because it can be misleading. Recent research suggests that an Omicron victim may be re-infected. BA2 Omicron strain, ”Budiman explained. “But the advantage of the Delta spread in July is that most Indonesians who contracted Sinovac and unknowingly contracted the virus because they were asymptomatic will have adequate immunity. Indonesia has a strong focus on Java and Bali, so problems will appear on other islands, as well as smaller areas in Bali and Java with fewer vaccines. “

To reduce hospital admissions, Budiman says, the government should encourage testing.

It should also reduce the shooting time of the elderly from six to four months after the second dose, while the recommendation for those who received doses of Sinovac should be mRNA, he said. A Yale study in the Dominican Republic found that antibodies against Omicron had risen among those who received Pfizer booster.

Western nations have added programs to promote Omicron waves, and Indonesia has begun released its promotion program last month but so far he has vaccinated only 1.9 percent of the expected population.

Three new studies from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in January also found that Pfizer’s shot was helpful in keeping most people with Omicron. getting out of the hospital.

Dr Nadia Wiweko, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health on the COVID-19 vaccine, says Indonesia is planning to vaccinate AstraZeneca or Pfizer for those who have had Sinovac twice.

Wiweko did not mention Sinovac’s power against Omicron or whether the waiting time between the second and third jab should be reduced.

Dr Amin Soebandrio, executive director of the Eijkman Institute, a government agency that specializes in the study of tropical and emerging diseases, alleviates the fears of the third deadly wave. He also cited a new study by the Ministry of Health based on Budiman’s statement that Indonesians are immune to multiple diseases during the Delta in July.

“It was found that 70 percent of those tested with no history of COVID-19 symptoms and those who received the vaccine already had antibodies, and that of those with a history of the disease and those who received the vaccine, more than 90 percent had antibodies. notable, “Soebandrio said of the study, which is being prepared for publication by colleagues.

Indonesia begins receiving vaccinations for children between the ages of six and 11, and launches a program to eradicate Omicron coronavirus wave[Fayilo: Adi Weda/EPA] [File:AdiWeda/EPA}[File:AdiWeda/EPA}

“Based on this, I do not think the Indonesian people are not at risk of receiving the Sinovac vaccine against messenger-RNA, as the number of antibodies has already increased,” he said.

“Omicron is already the most well-known nation in Indonesia, with more than 90 percent of cases reported, and most people with HIV are less or less asymptomatic. The number of hospitalizations will not rise as much as the second wave.”

Dr Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease specialist at Rophi Hospital in Singapore, admits, among other things, even for a variety of reasons.

“The short answer is that Indonesians are less likely to use Chinese vaccines which are less effective than messenger-RNA vaccines,” he said.

“But mothers’ chances have been a huge advantage for them because Omicron has been so limited, even for those who have been vaccinated with an unused vaccine.”