Vaccinated people who catch COVID-19 may still be less infectious than the unvaccinated

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2022-05-25 01:00

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Vaccinated people who catch COVID-19 spread the virus to fewer people and shed live virus for a shorter time than unvaccinated or only partially vaccinated people, according to a South Korean study. The small study found that vaccinated people passed the infection on just 7% of the time compared to 26% of the time in the unvaccinated group. The study also found that fully vaccinated people shed live virus that could be grown in cell culture for 4 days after symptoms started, while partially vaccinated shed live virus for 8 days and unvaccinated people for 10 days after symptoms began. The authors say the study provides important evidence that although there is the possibility of breakthrough infections, COVID-19 vaccinations remain critically useful for controlling the spread of the virus.