Study: Immunity from Pfizer dose weakens faster in men than women

Immunity weakened faster in men than women after the second dose of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, accordina new study.

The study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday, reports the Newsweek.

During the study, researchers surveyed nearly 5,000 health care professionals in Israel between December and July and concluded that six months after receiving the second Pfizer jab, immunity was "substantially decreased, especially among men, among persons 65 years of age or older, and among persons with immunosuppression.”

According to the study, women above 65 had a higher antibody count then men of the same age.

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In addition to that, by the end of the study, those aged between 18 and 45, were found to have a stronger immunity than older participants.

However, the study concluded that the overall immunity of both sexes weakened after six months.

"Published work about many vaccines, such as those against measles, mumps, and rubella, has shown a small decrease each year of 5 to 10 percent in the neutralizing antibody levels," the Newsweek report quoted researchers saying.

"We found that a significant and rapid decrease in humoral response to the BNT162b2 vaccine was observed within months after vaccination."

The new findings come to light as world leaders are considering booster shots of the coronavirus vaccine.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) floated booster shots in late September for 65 years and older, people aged 50 to 64 with underlying medical conditions and adults at increased risk of Covid-19 infection in the workplace.

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US President Joe Biden received his third shot of the vaccine on live television as the CDC expanded vaccine boosters to 60 million Americans.

Pfizer competitors Moderna and Johnson & Johnson have both applied for administration of booster doses.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is yet to give the go ahead on the matter but according to sources, an outside panel of the regulatory body is set to meet next week in order to review booster data from both companies, says the Newsweek report.

"Vaccines are one of the most important interventions for bringing an end to the ongoing pandemic," it quoted FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research Director Peter Marks.

He added: "It's critical that as many eligible individuals as possible get vaccinated as soon as possible."

FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee is expected to hold a meeting to discuss authorizing the Pfizer vaccine in children between the ages of 5 and 11 later in October.

On Thursday, Pfizer announced it had submitted an emergency request to the agency for authorization of their two-dose COVID-19 vaccine for kids.

The pharma company said it was an important step "with new cases in children in the US continuing to be at a high level."

Meanwhile, White House Covid-19 coordinator Jeffrey Zients told CNN on Thursday that pending FDA approval, Pfizer's vaccine could be distributed to children by Thanksgiving.