According to the latest research on handling Covid-19, scientists have found that even regular vaccines used for flu and measles can offer some protection against Coronavirus. Researchers have always believed that unrelated vaccines also have some positive effects, and they can be used when there is no better alternative.
The Covid Curve Can Be Flattened With Flu Shots And Measles Vaccines
The logic is that these generic vaccines also have the immune-boosting ability, and they can help protect people from several health complications that arise out of Covid-19.
In the early days of the pandemic, there was no approved vaccine for Covid, and many health experts opted for generic vaccines to treat patients with high-risk complications. This was beneficial to a large extent as it can at least avoid ICU admissions by some margin. Even though generic vaccines do not avoid Covid, they can reduce the symptoms to some extent in patients.
Several population health science experts agree with this as they have seen the positive effects of unrelated vaccines in several other cases. Such vaccines can be used during a pandemic, and they will reduce the burden on the system.
However, further research is needed in this area as scientists are still not clear about the extent of protection offered by these generic vaccines. Apart from that, it is also important to understand that such vaccines are not suitable for every segment of the population, and it has to be used appropriately after considering the overall health condition of the patient. In this regard, research should also be done thoroughly on the population segment suitable for such vaccines during a pandemic.
Yet another interesting aspect in this regard is the percentage of the population that needs such generic vaccine protection to defend something like Covid-19. When these things become clear, it will be very beneficial in the long run as the health system will have something to fall back on during the next wave of the pandemic.
As of now, Omicron can invade the protection offered even by Covid vaccines to a large extent. This can happen in the future also with further mutations, and new variants may need a different set of protection. In that situation, generic vaccines may be beneficial as they have a proven track record to improve the overall immune response in the body.
To provide a suitable answer to all these questions, scientists have also prepared a computer modeling system that will consider all the related factors. The model can also be customized as per the conditions prevailing in the locality. Whenever there is an outbreak, the immunity levels of the local population to the virus can be studied using this model, and this can provide better results with more data in the long run.
Using previous data, scientists have concluded that even if a small percentage of the population was given unrelated generic vaccines, it could help reduce the caseload. Most people are left with no immunity when stuck with Covid 19. However, when such a vulnerable population is given flu shots and measles vaccines as a precautionary step, it can protect them from severe symptoms of covid.
Apart from that, the model also suggested that vaccinating the youngsters was equally important to stop the spread of Covid-19. The administration focused entirely on vaccinating the elderly during the pandemic. However, youngsters are more prone to spreading the virus than older adults due to increased social contact. All these data points can be very useful to handle future waves of the pandemic as it answers key questions related to controlling the rapid spread of the virus in the community.
