Vaccinated English adults under 60

VERDICT

Missing context. The rate of death from COVID-19 is higher in the unvaccinated population than the vaccinated.

Review of studies reinforces the effectiveness of face coverings, handwashing and social distancing

Mask wearing is one of the most effective public health measures for preventing covid-19, reducing incidence of the disease by 53 per cent, according to a review of published research.

Stella Talic at Monash University in Australia and her colleagues carried out a meta-analysis using data from 72 studies to assess the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions – measures that don’t involve drugs – at containing the virus.

Handwashing was also estimated to reduce covid-19 incidence by 53 per cent, but this result was not statistically significant because only a small number of studies on it were included. Physical distancing was found to reduce incidence by 25 per cent.

“It is likely that further control of the covid-19 pandemic depends not only on high vaccination coverage and its effectiveness but also on ongoing adherence to effective and sustainable public health measures,” Talic and her colleagues write in the British Medical Journal.

For those aged 16 to 17 who have had coronavirus (COVID-19) infection, the second vaccine dose should be given 12 weeks or more following the first vaccine dose, or 12 weeks following a positive COVID-19 test result – whichever is later.

To be consistent with this advice, the clinical guidance has also been updated by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to recommend that young people aged 12 to 17 who are not in a high risk group should wait 12 weeks after a positive test showing COVID-19 infection before getting their first (or second if aged 16 to 17) vaccine dose.

This increase from 4 weeks is based on the emerging evidence from the UK and other countries, which suggests that leaving a longer interval between infection and vaccination may further reduce the already small risk of myocarditis in younger age groups.