KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 — It is vital for the recipients of the Comirnaty vaccine produced by Pfizer-BioNTech to take the second dose to significantly increase antibody production in order to efficiently gain long-term immunity against the virus.

Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Hisham Abdullah said the delay in getting the second dose would probably delay optimal antibody production.

"Based on the observation in clinical research, the efficacy of the Comirnaty vaccine will show from the 12th day after the dispensing of the first dose and the efficacy level will reach up to 89 per cent between the 14th and 21st day, which is the ideal time for the second dose to be dispensed,” he said in a statement here today.

He said, at present, the long-term efficacy of the first dose of the Comirnaty had remained unknown as the vaccine recipients in the clinical research were given the two doses within a period of 19 to 42 days.

Dr Noor Hisham said this to explain the vaccination process involving two doses of the Comirnaty vaccine.

Meanwhile, he said the third phase of the clinical research involving two doses of the vaccine given to recipients within the period of 21 days, the efficacy level of the Comirnaty vaccine was found to have reached 94.6 per cent in preventing symptomatic SARS CoV2 infection.

However, the World Health Organisation’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE)  recommended that the second dose be given 21 to 28 days after the first dose, he said.

Dr Noor Hisham added that the Ministry of Health was constantly monitoring the vaccine used in the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme to ensure its quality, efficacy and safety.— Bernama