Will Serbia give up on third dose of Covid vaccine? Dr. Kon reveals who decides about that

Photo: Tanjug/Strahinja Acimovic, ATA Images

After the mass immunization against coronavirus started in Serbia, there was speculation among the public about whether it would be necessary for everyone to receive three instead of two doses of a vaccine.

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Most experts agree that the third dose should be administered, for two reasons. The first refers to those who did not create a sufficient amount of antibodies, so the third dose would stimulate a stronger immune response of the organism.

Another reason refers to mutations in coronavirus that could be "covered" by giving a third dose of a vaccine from a different manufacturer. Creators of coronavirus vaccines have already started trials that could provide an answer to this question, while some in the expert community believe that giving a third dose of a vaccine from another manufacturer would succeed in "pushing coronavirus mutations into a corner", i.e., preventing the pathogen from changing and prolonging the duration of the pandemic.

Epidemiologist and member of the Crisis HQ, Dr. Predrag Kon, does not rule out the possibility of administering the third dose. He stresses, however, that instructions about the third dose of the coronavirus vaccine will be given by the National Immunization Committee.

"This is something that is expected, especially for those who have already determined that they do not have antibodies," Dr. Kon told TV Prva.

"From the professional point of view, they can already get vaccinated, but since everything will be done based on evidence, so will this."

Professor Dr. Milanko Sekler from the Veterinary Institute in Kraljevo recently rcalled that the manufacturer of the Chinese vaccine, Sinopharm, states in its instructions that 1% of those vaccinated with this vaccine will not create antibodies. He believes that the third dose of the vaccine should be considered as a way to suppress the pandemic.

It has been decided at the national level in the United Arab Emirates that those who received both doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine and did not acquire a sufficient amount of antibodies would receive the third dose.

Dr. Marija Gnjatovic from INEP believes that not everyone who has been vaccinated against coronavirus will receive the third dose of the vaccine. According to her, the third dose could be given only to those who did not create a sufficient amount of antibodies.

However, the final decision will be made by the National Immunization Committee.

(Telegraf.rs)