Scientists from Radbaud University Medical Center, along with colleagues from other universities and research centers in the Netherlands and Germany, tested whether an annual flu shot could provide cross-protection against COVID-19. It turned out that those who got the flu shot were 47 percent less likely to be infected with the coronavirus during the first wave of COVID-19 and 50 percent during the second. This was reported by RIA Novosti with reference to the research results published on the medRxiv preprint server.
According to the study authors, this result indicates that influenza vaccination protects against SARS-CoV-2 to some extent.
It is reported that scientists during the first wave of the pandemic conducted a study among employees of a large hospital in the Netherlands and found that the incidence of COVID-19 was much lower among those who received the flu vaccine compared to those who did not – 2.1 against 3.3 percent. According to the study, the risk of contracting COVID-19 among those vaccinated against the flu was 47 percent lower than those of the unvaccinated. In the second wave of the pandemic, these numbers were 2.0; 3.9 and 50 percent, respectively.
Earlier it was reported that Moderna announced the development of a single vaccine to protect against COVID-19 and seasonal flu. The vaccine developers intend to constantly update its composition in accordance with common strains.
