Vaccine Effectiveness during Outbreak of COVID-19 Alpha (B.1.1.7) Variant in Men's Correctional Facility, United States

Emerg Infect Dis. 2022 Jul;28(7):1313-1320. doi: 10.3201/eid2807.220091.ABSTRACTIn April 2021, a COVID-19 outbreak occurred at a correctional facility in rural Virginia, USA. Eighty-four infections were identified among 854 incarcerated persons by facilitywide testing with reverse transcription quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR). We used whole-genome sequencing to link all infections to 2 employees infected with the B.1.1.7α (UK) variant. The relative risk comparing unvaccinated to fully vaccinated persons (mRNA-1273 [Moderna, https://www.modernatx.com]) was 7.8 (95% CI 4.8-12.7), corresponding to a vaccine effectiveness of 87.1% (95% CI 79.0%-92.1%). Average qRT-PCR cycle threshold values were lower, suggesting higher viral loads, among unvaccinated infected than vaccinated cases for the nucleocapsid, envelope, and spike genes. Vaccination was highly effective at preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection in this high-risk setting. This approach can be applied to similar settings to estimate vaccine effectiveness as variants emerge to guide public health strategies during the ongoing pandemic.PMID:35731137 | DOI:10.3201/eid2807.220091

Source: Emerging Infectious Diseases - June 22, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Rachel A Silverman Alessandro Ceci Alasdair Cohen Meagan Helmick Erica Short Paige Bordwine Michael J Friedlander Carla V Finkielstein Source Type: research