Scientists study man who received over 200 COVID-19 vaccines

Health

By Adriana Diaz

He followed the science — and now the science is following him.

A 62-year-old man claiming to have received more than 200 COVID-19 vaccines is being studied by experts who say they’ve been amazed by their findings thus far.

Analysis of the über-cautious German, published in the journal Lancet Infectious Diseases, found that the vaccines continued to create antigens and provide increased immunity — even after an alleged 217 doses.

Researchers at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg and Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, Munich and Vienna approached the unnamed individual after hearing local media reports.

“We contacted him and invited him to undergo various tests in Erlangen. He was very interested in doing so,” said Dr. Kilian Schober from the Institute of Microbiology at Germany’s University Hospital of Erlangen, said in a written statement.

The team found official evidence of 134 Covid-19 vaccines of eight different types over a nine-month period. The shot-happy sexagenarian claims to have been inoculated 217 times over a 29-month span.

It is not known why the man received such a large number of vaccinations.

The public prosecutor in the German city of Magdeburg, where the study subject lived, opened a fraud investigation to investigate the man’s claims, but never filed charges.

The eager participant provided the research team with blood and saliva samples that had been previously collected, along with new samples. He even insisted on getting more vaccinations after the team had contacted him and provided samples after those had been injected.

The highly-inoculated man did not report any side effects from the vaccinations.

However, the researchers did find that his immune system produced a large amount of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.

“Over all, we did not find any indication for a weaker immune response, rather the contrary,” Katharina Kocher, one of the leading authors of the study, said in the statement.

The team found that the man’s immune system was fully functioning and showed signs of increased immunity against the coronavirus —compared to those who received the more typical three rounds of vaccine.

Even the final jab included in the study — which the man said was his 217th — was found to create more antigens and boost immunity.

Researchers also did not find any evidence that the subject had ever contracted COVID-19.

This study was the first to show what effects hyper-vaccination would have on the immune system.

Vaccines contain a small dose or something similar to the virus it’s intended to protect against, allowing the body to recognize the pathogen and build a rapid and effective response, should it enter the body.

Some scientists had believed that hypervaccination would weaken the immune system and cause the body’s antigens to become accustomed to the virus making the vaccines less effective.

They were surprised to learn the reverse was true.

Despite the promising results, the experts do not recommend exceeding the recommended amount of vaccinations for any condition.

“Current research indicates that a three dose vaccination, coupled with regular top-up vaccines for vulnerable groups, remains the favored approach. There is no indication that more vaccines are required,” Dr. Schober said.