JERUSALEM, March 28 (Xinhua) -- A study of COVID-19 vaccine recipients in Israel has found that among people aged 60 and over, receiving a second booster shot reduces the death risk by 78 percent compared to only receiving one booster, the country's Clalit Health Services said Monday.
The retrospective analysis was conducted by Clalit and Ben-Gurion University for a 40-day period starting Jan. 10, and its findings were published last week on the preprint platform Research Square.
The study involved 563,465 Clalit members who were deemed eligible for a second booster and met research criteria. Among them, 328,597 participants received a second booster during the period, with 92 dying from COVID-19, whereas 232 participants who received one booster died from the disease, showed the study.
The study produced an observed effect of 78 percent reduction in mortality rates between the two groups of booster recipients, with a 95 percent confidence interval of 0.17-0.28, researchers said.
"Our study results may provide primary evidence regarding the life-saving potential of an additional booster dose," which can help decision-makers in assessing the benefit of providing the second booster to targeted populations, they concluded.
In January, Israel approved a fourth dose (second-booster) of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to protect those at high risk. ■
