Thread by @AppletoZucchini

Where are @apoorva_nyc's editors after last week's outrageously misleading article & retractions?

Today's piece nytimes.com/2021/10/12/hea… is another mess! (thread)

In which, @apoorva_nyc refers to "so-called natural immunity." It’s 'so called' because it exists! @CDCgov even documents it.

“Natural immunity is acquired from exposure to the disease organism through infection with the actual disease.”

cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-g…

And this: “No one should try to acquire immunity through natural infection." The non-immune, should get vaccinated, the immune (vaccine or natural immunity should both be studied to gauge how effective natural immunity & vaccine immunity continues to be.

As @JenGommerman notes, the virus stimulates defenses in nose & throat, exactly where needed to prevent 2nd infection. “That will give you an edge in terms of resisting a subsequent infection." Proteins carried by vaccine produce antibodies mainly in blood & quickly exit body.

@apoorva_nyc, You say naturally immunity depends on age & health status. Balanced reporting would indicate that vaccine immunity also depends on age & health status. That’s why only a small cohort of elderly individuals are getting a booster shot!

You point out that antibodies from infection will wane. But antibodies from the Pfizer (& other) vaccines also wane over time. The Qatar study found protection from Pfizer starts to decrease at 4 months.

There is a reason to get a Tetanus booster every 10 years!

Immunologist @MICHELNUSSENZW1 says ‘you’re either going to get boosted or you’re going to get infected."

He’s right. Europe knows & has set that time for a single shot booster at 270 days. The U.S. has set that time at zero days with two recommended shots.

@apoorva cites studies by @VirusesImmunity constrained by the reliability & sensitivity of antibody testing. Again, where is the balanced reporting?

I think we all acknowledge that the vaccine is non-sterilizing & does not prevent future infection, so @ClevelandClinic study that 1,359 unvaxxed HCW never tested positive again is a powerful data point that shows natural immunity against covid is not ‘so-called’ but REAL.

If a study showed 1,359 HCW got sick again you would be rightly claiming natural immunity does not exist. This study shows natural immunity exists & is powerful, highlights why some medical professionals who got sick would like to delay vaccination instead of getting fired.

You dismiss natural immunity studies for only tracking people for a yr, while vaxx studies tracked people for shorter. You would need to be in clinical trial to be tracked for vaccine immunity for 1 yr+. Pfizer EUA was granted on 12/11/20, 10 mnths ago! nytimes.com/live/2020/12/1…

You highlight natural immunity breakthrough rates but these studies aren't time corrected. Waning efficacy is also partly because Pfizer was 1st to market & been in arms for 10 months+ for those in trials. Guess what, natural immunity beat Pfizer to market by almost a yr!

@duane_wesemann's paper & the benefit of a single dose is great, but US govt will not accept that as vaccinated, a point you don't make. European govts will. It is hard to sell someone a single shot when it society says that doesn’t count.

You note that “mild cases of Covid-19 can result in long-term damage to the heart, kidneys and brain." What about also including there is a small but elevated risk of Myocarditis in teenage boys post-vaccination. Balanced journalism would provide that data point.

After last week's shoddy reporting & glaring errors, I don't know what I was hoping for- but certainly not this. Sadly what I got was more of the same. Really, embarrassing & sloppy @nytimes.