Home
Scholarly Works
Effectiveness and Duration of Protection of a...
Journal article

Effectiveness and Duration of Protection of a Fourth Dose of COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine among Long-Term Care Residents in Ontario, Canada

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background As of December 30, 2021, Ontario long-term care (LTC) residents who received a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine ≥84 days previously were offered a fourth dose to prevent a surge in COVID-19-related morbidity and mortality due to the Omicron variant. Seven months have passed since fourth doses were implemented, allowing for the examination of fourth dose protection over time. Methods We used a test-negative design and linked databases to estimate the marginal effectiveness (4 versus 3 doses) and vaccine effectiveness (VE; 2, 3, or 4 doses versus no doses) of mRNA vaccines among Ontario LTC residents aged ≥60 years who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 between December 30, 2021 and August 3, 2022. Outcome measures included any Omicron infection, symptomatic infection, and severe outcomes (hospitalization or death). Results We included 21,275 Omicron cases and 273,466 test-negative controls. The marginal effectiveness of a fourth dose <84 days ago compared to a third dose received ≥84 days ago was 23% (95% Confidence Interval [CI] 17-29%), 36% (95%CI 26-44%), and 37% (95%CI 24-48%) against SARS-CoV-2 infection, symptomatic infection, and severe outcomes, respectively. Additional protection provided by a fourth dose compared to a third dose was negligible against all outcomes ≥168 days after vaccination. Compared to unvaccinated individuals, vaccine effectiveness (VE) of a fourth dose decreased from 49% (95%CI 44%-54%) to 18% (95%CI 5-28%) against infection, 69% (95%CI 62-75%) to 44% (95%CI 24-59%) against symptomatic infection, and 82% (95%CI 77-86%) to 74% (95%CI 62-82%) against severe outcomes <84 days versus ≥168 days after vaccination. Conclusions Our findings suggest that fourth doses of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines provide additional protection against Omicron-related outcomes in LTC residents, but the protection wanes over time, with more waning seen against infection than severe outcomes.

Authors

Grewal R; Nguyen L; Buchan SA; Wilson SE; Costa AP; Kwong JC

Journal

, , ,

Publisher

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Publication Date

September 30, 2022

DOI

10.1101/2022.09.29.22280526

ISSN

3067-2007

Labels

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

View published work (Non-McMaster Users)

Contact the Experts team