India is fighting its battle against the second wave of coronavirus. The country is witnessing a massive surge in COVID-19 cases because of which there has been an acute crisis of medications, oxygen cylinders, and hospital beds. People are grappling with fear, insecurity and trying their best to keep the deadly virus at bay. Many have started queuing up at vaccination centres to get jabbed. But there are many people who are testing positive soon in between vaccine doses.
The risk of contracting COVID-19 after taking the first shot is higher because the first dose offers partial immunity and does not protect you fully, as per a report in TOI.
What Happens if You Catch COVID-19 in Between Vaccine Doses?
Testing positive right after getting vaccinated is possible according to reports. For most people, the symptoms will be mild to moderate, depending on how many days after vaccination exposure occurred, according to a report in The Print. ‘If you get exposed and the symptoms start showing in one to three weeks of receiving the first dose, the vaccine is unlikely to have a major effect and is not expected to modify the course of the infection. However, if a person tests positive after three weeks from their first dose, they are highly likely to only get a mild disease,’ said the report.
After you contract the virus, the body will make antibodies, and it is once again effectively akin to getting a vaccine.
When Should You Get Vaccinated After Testing Positive?
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that an individual should get vaccinated soon after recovering from the COVID-19 virus, whereas the World Health Organization (WHO) has said that a person should wait for six months. WHO says that natural antibodies will most likely persist in the human body till then.
In India, medical experts have recommended the arbitrary gaps between recovery and vaccination, should be between one and three months.
People who are getting infected even getting fully vaccinated are termed to be ‘breakthrough’ cases. Breakthrough cases are mostly mild to moderate.
What are the recent guidelines for getting your doses?
Recent guidelines say that beneficiaries getting Covishield jab should wait for at least 8-12 weeks, with Covaxin, one should wait for 4-6 weeks.
Please note, that both Covaxin and Covishield are disease-modifying vaccines. The vaccinations do not prevent you from getting an infection, but they can protect and guard you against getting any severe disease from COVID-19 in future.