How do vaccine responses compare among older and younger people? Elizabeth Tracey reports

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Vaccination against Covid-19 in a group of adults older than 75 years of age has shown that while they do produce antibodies in response, they differ from what is seen in younger people. That’s according to Sean Leng, a geriatrics expert at Johns Hopkins.

Leng: When we compare the younger folks the older folks still the antibody titers are not up to the level that the younger individuals can mount. I call it immune remodeling. The immune system changes. Not all of them are going down, some of them may actually be going up. For example some inflammatory markers are going up. When you compare influenza immunization, similar trend. Over 90% of the influenza related mortality also occurs in the elderly population.  :32

Leng says this may point to the need for more frequent boosters or another type of vaccine for older people. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.