Does ChAdOx1-S and BNT162b2 heterologous prime-boost vaccination trigger higher rates of vaccine-related adverse events?

Background: There has been significant international interest in heterologous prime-boost COVID-19 vaccination. However, it is linked with different intensity and frequency of adverse events. This study aimed to assess the safety of ChAdOx1-S and BNT162b2 vaccines when given as heterologous prime-boost vaccination in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted during the period October 2021 to March 2022. The study included two groups of people based on the type of vaccination regimen. The first group (heterologous) was subjected to different prime-boost vaccination schedules irrespective of the prime and boost vaccine types. The second group included people vaccinated with the same type of COVID-19 vaccine (homologous). Results: The overall sample included 334 participants. Those included in the heterologous group were at about 1.5 fold -increased risk for developing local and systemic adverse events compared to the homologous group. Fever, headache, and vomiting were significantly more frequent among the heterologous group compared to the homologous group (p-value<0.05). In both groups, more than half of the recorded adverse events were mild/moderate in severity. Conclusion: Heterologous prime-post vaccination is associated with a slightly increased risk for the development of local and systemic adverse events compared to the homologous regimen. However, most of these adverse events are mild/moderate in nature and recede within two days with no serious adverse events documented.

Does ChAdOx1-S and BNT162b2 heterologous prime-boost vaccination trigger higher rates of vaccine-related adverse events?

Background There has been a significant international interest in heterologous prime-boost COVID-19 vaccination. However, it was linked with different intensity and frequency of adverse events. This study aimed to assess the safety of ChAdOx1-S and BNT162b2 vaccines when given as heterologous prime-boost vaccination in Saudi Arabia. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted during the period October 2021 to March 2022. The study included two groups of people based on the type of vaccination regimen. The first group (heterologous) was subjected to different prime-boost vaccination schedules irrespective of the prime and boost vaccine types. While the second group included people vaccinated with the same type of COVID-19 vaccine (homologous). Results The overall sample included was 334 participants. Those included in the heterologous group were at about 1.5 fold -increased risk for developing local and systematic adverse events compared to homologous group. Fever, headache, and vomiting were significantly more frequent among heterologous group compared to homologous one (p-value<0.05). In both groups, more than half of the recorded adverse events were mild/moderate in severity. Conclusion Heterologous prime-post vaccination is associated with slightly increased risk for the development of local and systemic adverse events compared to the homologous regimen. However, most of these adverse events are mild/moderate in nature and recede within two days with no serious adverse events documented.

Protective Duration of ChAdOx1 and BNT162b2 Vaccines Against SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: A limited number of studies have addressed the protective duration of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines following primary and booster doses in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the protective duration of primary and booster doses of BNT162b2 and ChAdOx1 COVID-19 vaccine batches in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 1 January to 31 December, 2021. The study included 53,354 people infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 2 weeks or more after receiving at least a primary vaccination of either the ChAdOx1 or BNT162b2 vaccine. RESULTS: The total median protective duration of both primary COVID-19 vaccinations was 134 days. Heterologous primary vaccination (ChAdOx1 followed by BNT162b2) showed a significantly higher median protective duration of 142 days. The results show that the total median protective duration of the first booster doses of COVID-19 vaccines was 57 days. ChAdOx1 batch code C1 was found to have the most extended protective duration of 173 days (range 163-192 days). CONCLUSIONS: The current study revealed that the median protective duration of ChAdOx1 and BNT162b2 COVID-19 primary vaccination regimens administered in Saudi Arabia in 2021 was 134 days and that heterologous primary vaccination (ChAdOx1→BNT162b2) exhibited a significantly higher protective duration than other vaccination regimens.

Post-COVID-19 syndrome: nature of symptoms and associated factors.

Aim: Post-COVID-19 syndrome is defined as continuous symptoms related to SARS-CoV-2 infection, which can persist for several weeks or months. Previous studies identified risk factors associated with post-COVID-19 syndrome, including female sex, hypertension, and allergic respiratory diseases. This study aims to investigate the frequency of this syndrome among Arabic patients. Subject and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to August 2022. The study included 520 Arabic patients with confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, who were asked about possible symptoms persisting for ≥28 days. Results: Twenty-five percent (25%) of the included patients developed post-COVID-19 syndrome. The most common recorded symptoms were cough (32%), anosmia (32%), fatigue (28%), headache (19%), muscle pain (19%), and shortness of breath (17%). It was found that female sex, hospitalization due to initial COVID-19 infection, and the presence of chronic diseases were significant risk factors for developing post-COVID-19 syndrome. Conclusion: The study recorded post-COVID-19 syndrome among 25% of Arabic participants. Initial COVID-19 hospitalization, initial symptomatic COVID-19, and female sex were significant risk factors for developing post-COVID-19 syndrome. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10389-022-01802-3.

Post-COVID-19 syndrome: nature of symptoms and associated factors

Aim Post-COVID-19 syndrome is defined as continuous symptoms related to SARS-CoV-2 infection, which can persist for several weeks or months. Previous studies identified risk factors associated with post-COVID-19 syndrome, including female sex, hypertension, and allergic respiratory diseases. This study aims to investigate the frequency of this syndrome among Arabic patients. Subject and methods A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to August 2022. The study included 520 Arabic patients with confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, who were asked about possible symptoms persisting for ≥28 days. Results Twenty-five percent (25%) of the included patients developed post-COVID-19 syndrome. The most common recorded symptoms were cough (32%), anosmia (32%), fatigue (28%), headache (19%), muscle pain (19%), and shortness of breath (17%). It was found that female sex, hospitalization due to initial COVID-19 infection, and the presence of chronic diseases were significant risk factors for developing post-COVID-19 syndrome. Conclusion The study recorded post-COVID-19 syndrome among 25% of Arabic participants. Initial COVID-19 hospitalization, initial symptomatic COVID-19, and female sex were significant risk factors for developing post-COVID-19 syndrome. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10389-022-01802-3.

COVID-19 vaccine acceptance: knowledge and beliefs.

Backgrounds: Vaccine acceptance varies across countries, generations, and the perceived personality of individuals. Investigating the knowledge, beliefs, and acceptability of COVID-19 vaccines among individuals is vital to ensuring adequate health system capacity and procedures and promoting the uptake of the vaccines. Results: A cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2021 to January 2022 in Saudi Arabia. The study included 281 residents to estimate their acceptance to receive COVID-19 vaccination. Around 70% of the included participants had a moderate to high COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rate during the data collection period. The risk increases to about two folds among undergraduates [OR 1.846 (1.034-3.296), p value = 0.036)] and increases to four folds among non-employed [OR 3.944 (2.310-6.737), p value = 0.001]. About 78% of participants with high and 44% with low COVID-19 vaccine acceptance (p value = 0.001) believed the vaccines were safe and effective. The belief that COVID-19 disease will be controlled within two years increased the risk for low vaccine acceptance by about two folds [OR 1.730 (1.035-2.891), p value = 0.035]. Good knowledge about COVID-19 vaccination significantly affected the acceptance rate (p value = 0.001). Conclusions: Several factors affect the intention of individuals to receive vaccines. Therefore, building good knowledge and health literacy through educational intervention programs, especially vaccine safety and effectiveness, is important for successful vaccination campaigns among the general population and ensuring control of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Seroprevalence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 among blood donors in the early months of the pandemic in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: Serologic testing provides better understanding of SARS-CoV-2 prevalence and its transmission. This study was an investigation of the prevalence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 among blood donors in Saudi Arabia. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among blood donors in Saudi Arabia during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Serology results and epidemiological data were analyzed for 837 adult blood donors, with no confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, in Saudi Arabia from 20th to 25th May 2020. Seroprevalence was determined using electrochemical immunoassay to detect anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. RESULTS: The overall seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was 1.4% (12/837). Non-citizens had higher seroprevalence compared with citizens (OR 13.6, p = 0.001). Secondary education was significantly associated with higher seroprevalence compared with higher education (OR 6.8, p = 0.005). The data showed that the highest seroprevalence was in Makkah (8.1%). Uisng Makkah seroprevalence as the reference, the seroprevalence in other areas was: Madinah 4.1% (OR 0.48, 95% CI 0.12-1.94), Jeddah 2.3% (OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.31-2.25), and Qassim 2.9 % (OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.04-2.89) and these were not statistically different from seroprevalence in the Makkah region. CONCLUSIONS: At the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia, the seroprevalence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 among blood donors was low, but was higher among non-citizens. These findings may indicate that non-citizens and less educated individuals may be less attentive to preventive measures. Monitoring seroprevalence trends over time require repeated sampling.

Comorbidities and severity of coronavirus disease 2019 patients.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the association between comorbidities and the severity of the disease among COVID-19 patients. METHODS: We searched the Cochrane, Medline, Trip, and EMBASE databases from 2019. The review included all available studies of COVID-19 patients published in the English language and studied the clinical characteristics, comorbidities, and disease outcomes from the beginning of the pandemic.  Two authors extracted studies characteristics and the risk of bias. Odds ratio (OR) was used to analyze the data with 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: The review included 1,885 COVID-19 patients from 7 observational studies with some degree of bias risk and substantial heterogeneity. A significant association was recorded between COVID-19 severity and the following variables: male (OR= 1.60, 95%CI= 1.05 - 2.43); current smoker (OR=2.06, 95%CI= 1.08 - 3.94); and the presence of comorbidities including hypertension (OR=2.05, 95%CI= 1.56 - 2.70), diabetes (OR=2.46, 95%CI= 1.53 - 3.96), coronary heart disease (OR=4.10, 95%CI= 2.36 - 7.12), chronic kidney disease (OR=4.06, 95%CI= 1.45 - 11.35), and cancer (OR=2.28, 95%CI= 1.08 - 4.81). CONCLUSIONS: Comorbidities among COVID-19 patients may contribute to increasing their susceptibility to severe illness. The identification of these potential risk factors could help reduce mortality by identifying patients with poor prognosis at an early stage.