The estimated effectiveness of
in preventing deaths from the virus, compared to just two doses, is 87.2% in people aged 18 years of age and above.
This was revealed by two studies conducted by the
National Health Institute (INS) of the
Ministry of Health (Minsa) based on national databases to determine the effectiveness of the third dose in preventing COVID-19-related deaths during the Omicron wave in Peru —a period between December 20, 2021, and February 20, 2022.
The first study concluded that the estimated effectiveness of this third dose in preventing COVID-19 deaths compared to just two doses is 87.2% in people 18 years of age or older.
It means that the probability of dying from the new coronavirus during the Omicron wave was almost 90% lower in people vaccinated with three doses than those with only two doses.
An important point to bear in mind is that the third dose's effectiveness remained at 87.1% in people aged 60 years and over, who are indeed part of the group facing the highest mortality rates.
Besides, the effectiveness did not show significant variations among the different initial vaccination schemes.
The other study evaluated mortality rates over time, according to different vaccination statuses.
It was found that at the Omicron wave's peak, people aged 18 years and over who had received two vaccine doses reduced their risk of dying by 2.3 times compared to unvaccinated ones. Those with three doses showed a greater reduction in mortality —this being 3.1 times.
In the case of citizens over 60 years of age, during the Omicron peak, the population vaccinated with two doses reduced their risk of dying by 1.4 times if compared to unvaccinated people.
While in people who had received the third dose, the reduction was highly marked —with mortality being 6.4 times lower in this group.
These results highlight the importance of the third dose of vaccination against COVID-19 to prevent deaths from this disease, being the effectiveness consistent in people over 60 years of age —the group most vulnerable to dying from this infection.
Therefore, all necessary efforts must be made to complete the vaccination scheme according to the instructions by Minsa. In this sense, those who have not been vaccinated with the third dose must receive it.
People aged 40 and above who have received the third dose must get the fourth dose, if 5 months have passed since its administration.