Ofeleein i mi Vlaptin—Volume II: Immunity Following Infection or mRNA Vaccination, Drug Therapies and Non-Pharmacological Management at Post-Two Years SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic

Abstract

The persistence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered research into limiting transmission, morbidity and mortality, thus warranting a comprehensive approach to guide balanced healthcare policies with respect to people’s physical and mental health. The mainstay priority during COVID-19 is to achieve widespread immunity, which could be established through natural contact or vaccination. Deep knowledge of the immune response combined with recent specific data indicates the potential inferiority of induced immunity against infection. Moreover, the prevention of transmission has been founded on general non-pharmacological measures of protection, albeit debate exists considering their efficacy and, among other issues, their socio-psychological burden. The second line of defense is engaged after infection and is supported by a plethora of studied agents, such as antibiotics, steroids and non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs, antiviral medications and other biological agents that have been proposed, though variability in terms of benefits and adverse events has not allowed distinct solutions, albeit certain treatments might have a role in prevention and/or treatment of the disease. This narrative review summarizes the existing literature on the advantages and weaknesses of current COVID-19 management measures, thus underlining the necessity of acting based on the classical principle of “ofeleein i mi vlaptin”, that is, to help or not to harm.

COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Effectiveness against Elderly Frail People

“…Additional data also indicate that antibody responses after a booster dose tend to decline rapidly in older populations (>60 years) after an initial peak: a sub-five-fold drop in peak antibody titer occurs in 16 weeks [ 19 ]. Therefore, the longevity of COVID-19 vaccination-related immunogenicity is rather lacking [ 20 ]. Furthermore, in populations aged from 18 to 74 years, COVID 19-related vaccines could be linked to the enhanced occurrence of myocardial infarction and pulmonary embolism [ 21 ].…”

“…Interestingly, recent in vitro studies indicate that vaccine-related SARS-CoV-2 spike protein considerably reduces the DNA damage repairing proteins, which are essential for efficient V(D)J recombination in adaptive immunity. In this way, vaccines weaken the reactions of adaptive immune system and suggest a probable adverse event of spike protein-based vaccines [ 20 ]; mutations of such repair proteins appear to trigger oncogenic process [ 22 ]. Moreover, recent published data revealed an excess of risk of serious adverse effects related to mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines and underlined the necessity of harm–benefit analyses, in order to stratify risk [ 23 ].…”

Excess Mortality in Cyprus during the COVID-19 Epidemic

“…Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID- 19) was caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. It was first reported in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, and along the way it has emerged as a global pandemic [1]. According to officially published data from the World Health Organization (WHO), on September 6th 2023, a total of 770.437.327 confirmed cases and 6.956.900 deaths have been globally recorded [2].…”