How long do COVID boosters protect us? New study has answer

COVID-19 boosters extend the protection provided by COVID-19 vaccinations. But how long? Two new studies found that while boosters offer significant protection, their benefits wear off over time.

The studies, published by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), found that protection wears off an average of four months after the booster shot. This evidence leads some researchers to believe that booster shots will be necessary until the pandemic is under control.

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The researchers examined the records of more than 200,000 emergency department and emergency care visits and over 90,000 hospital admissions, all of which occurred between August 2021 and January 2022. The researchers were able to see more protection after the patients received their third dose, but they were also able to pinpoint the moment when the protection wore off.

Two months after the third dose, there was 87% protection at emergency and emergency visits and 91% protection from hospital admissions. By month four, those numbers had fallen to 66% and 78%, respectively.

Evidence of declining immunity was not only found in omicron cases. Previous data from when Delta was the dominant strain also showed that patients lost their immunity over time.

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The CDC concluded their findings by stating that “underscores the importance of a third dose of mRNA-COVID-19 vaccine to prevent both COVID-19 associated ED/UC encounters and COVID-19 hospitalizations in adults.” “.