Third dose, paid tests, symptoms…: the latest Covid news

Following the opinion of the European Medicines Agency which gave the green light on the injection of booster doses for all adults with the Pfizer vaccine, the High Authority for Health (HAS) has for the moment excluded to extend the third dose to all. Last August, it positioned itself in favor of the administration of a third dose for people over 65 and for those who suffer from severe comorbidities. In addition, it now recommends injecting a new dose of Pfizer vaccine to caregivers working in medical transport and in the medico-social sector, or about 3.5 million people. Added to this is also “those around immunocompromised people”, or between 350,000 and 400,000 people.

The HAS not closed to the extension of booster doses for all

The government must now decide on the opinion of the HAS but, in all likelihood, should follow its recommendations on the extension of the scope of the booster dose. The HAS does not, however, close the door to the extension of the administration of third doses to the entire population eligible for the vaccine, but cautiously indicates that it will review its recommendations “as soon as new data justify it”.

In Israel, the third dose curbed the epidemic

Since the launch of the booster dose vaccination campaign on 1^er August, Israel saw its epidemic situation improve markedly. Initially open only to people aged 60 and over, it is now extended to all people over 12 years old. And the effects are felt since the number of daily cases has continued to fall, as has that of serious patients, falling respectively from more than 11,000 to just over 3,000 and from 759 to 471, between August 30 and October 6.

In Israel, the first data on the third dose show encouraging effects. Currently, more than 3.6 million people have already received a third dose of the vaccine in Israel, almost 40% of the population. In people over 60, the first data reveal the effectiveness of this booster dose. The three doses would protect this population 30 times more than those who are not vaccinated and 7 times more than those who received two doses. Thus, in a group of 100,000 inhabitants aged at least 60 at each time, there are 132 serious cases among those who have not been vaccinated and only 2 among those who have received three doses of vaccine. “Over the past few weeks, there have been 70 deaths: 52 people who were not vaccinated at all, 16 who had received two doses, and only two with three doses.”, complete with the Parisian Cyrille Cohen, immunologist at Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv.

The mystery of “Covid toes” solved

Researchers have shed light on the mystery of “Covid toes” suffered by some patients, which are characterized by lesions resembling frostbite. A new study, published in the British Journal of Dermatologyreveals the mechanism involved in these symptoms after examining 50 participants suffering from this pathology and thirteen with similar frostbite that appeared before the epidemic.

According to the authors, this is caused by an immune response with high levels of certain autoantibodies that react to the invading disease and mistakenly target the individual’s cells and tissues. In addition, type I interferon, a key protein in the antiviral response, is highly expressed and all diseases induced by type I IFN lead to clinical frostbite.

44 euros for a PCR, 22 euros for an antigen

Finally, the government has revealed the price of so-called “comfort” tests from October 15. As a reminder, PCR and antigen tests will remain free for all vaccinated people as well as for those who have a medical prescription. For all the others, you will have to pay at least 44 euros for a PCR test and 22 euros for an antigen. In pharmacies, you will have to pay 25 euros or even 30 euros at the weekend. Self-tests at 5.20 euros will become chargeable when they are carried out under the supervision of the pharmacist.