SynthesisEuropean respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society2025
Effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe outcomes in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of European studies published up to 22 January 2024.
Synthesis in European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Severity of COVID-19 Omicron Variants: A Global Systematic Review.Infectious diseases and therapy · 2026Pooled it
- The efficacy and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in Iran: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC infectious diseases · 2025Pooled it
- Trial
- Azelastine Nasal Spray for Prevention of SARS-CoV-2 Infections: A Phase 2 Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA internal medicine · 2025Trial
- Risk Factors and Vaccination Dose Associated with COVID-19 Mortality: A Population-Based Study in Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Factors associated with thrombotic events among young adults in India, 2021-23: A multi-centric hospital-based matched case -control study.The Indian journal of medical research · 2026Article
- Article
- Engineering Komagataella phaffii for secreted and surface-displayed production of SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain and its immunogenicity evaluation.Microbial cell factories · 2026Article
- Real-world evidence on RSV vaccine uptake, effectiveness, and safety in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.The Lancet regional health. Europe · 2026Article
- Article
- Potential Public Health and Economic Impact of the Next-Generation COVID-19 Vaccine mRNA-1283 in The Netherlands.Vaccines · 2026Article
- Immune Priming and the Risk of COVID-19, Influenza, and Other Acute Respiratory Infections: Insights From an N3C Cohort.Influenza and other respiratory viruses · 2026Article
- Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Infection on Pulmonary Function in the PURE-Colombia Cohort: A Comparative Analysis with Pre-COVID Values and Non-COVID-19 Controls.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Estimated Effectiveness of 2024-2025 COVID-19 Vaccination Against Severe COVID-19.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Article
- COVID-19 mRNA vaccines: a prospective outlook from technological innovation to clinical practice.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Retrospective neutralization analysis of SARS-CoV-2 variants in early pandemic sera.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Article
- SARS-CoV-2 mRNA Vaccine Effectiveness in the Borriana COVID-19 Cohort: A Prospective Population-Based Cohort Study.Epidemiologia (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Retrospective Cohort Analysis of Survival After SARS-CoV-2 Infection by Vaccination Status in Jamaica, April-December 2021.Vaccines · 2025Article
- Improving the evidence base for COVID-19 vaccines.Nature medicine · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundUp-to-date evidence from European studies on long-term vaccine effectiveness (VE) of COVID-19 vaccines is lacking. This review aimed to evaluate effectiveness and durability of primary vaccine series and boosters in preventing infection and severe outcomes in the European population.
methodsWe conducted systematic searches of PubMed and Embase up to 22 January 2024. We included observational studies that evaluated VE against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection or severe disease (hospitalisation, intensive care unit admission or death) for primary series and boosters in Europe. We applied a random-effects meta-analysis model.
resultsWe included 33 studies and over 56 million participants. The overall VE of the complete primary series against infection with any SARS-CoV-2 variant was 70.7%. VE was lower for Omicron, at 26.1%, than for pre-Omicron strains, at 77.0%. Over time, VE against infection by any variant decreased from 68.9% to 38.9% after 6 months. Boosters restored VE to 76.4% and maintained at 58.4% after 3 months. The overall VE of a complete primary series for severe outcomes due to any variant was 87.4%, with 93.3% for pre-Omicron and 62.8% for Omicron strains. Protection against severe outcomes declined less than for infection. 6 months after the primary series, the vaccine still provided over 50% protection against severe outcomes caused by Omicron. Boosters restored VE to 87.9% and maintained at 78.5% after 3 months.
conclusionVE against SARS-CoV-2 infection declines markedly with time and Omicron variants. Protection against severe outcomes was more durable and resistant to viral mutation. Boosters restored protection, emphasising the need for timely booster vaccination for vulnerable populations.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.