Covid breakthrough. An UpClose Report

Breakthrough cases can happen. 

Vaccination probably saved his life.

Christopher Drayton

A Guest Post report from the front lines of the COVID war. 

Christopher Drayton, age 67, a resident of Minnesota, reads this blog. He was a former client from back when I was a Financial Advisor. He fits the demographic of the people least likely to get the disease because he is vaccinated, COVID conscious, highly informed about infection control, and he was able to arrange his life in a way to minimize contact with people likely to be infected.

He got it anyway. 

Chris Drayton is an exception. Few vaccinated people get a serious breakthrough case. But as this blog noted a week ago, much of public opinion on COVID comes from learning the personal experiences of people who have the disease and who then tell people about it. The people who do the talking are the survivors. For a great many people, COVID symptoms are mild. Sometimes they aren't. Christopher Drayton had the disease and this is his story.

Guest Post by Chris Drayton

A little about me.

I am retired but for many years I managed biopharmaceutical and immunodiagnostics engineering. I understand contamination controls on a deeply practical level, masks, airflow, turbulence, HVAC systems, exposure length, and particle concentration. I have tried to identify and minimize risk where I could in my daily activities.

My career included 35 years of manufacturing, engineering, R&D, supply chain management in biopharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostics industries. I’ve been responsible for design, validation, and operations for aseptic filling of IV injectable biologics. I completed the schematic design of a veterinary vaccine production facility as a consultant. I was a member of a Phase 3 clinical trial design team for an anti-rejection biologic for organ transplant patients. 

In March I was vaccinated with two doses of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine. 

I think I’m in pretty good shape for my age. I play basketball outside in the summers and have no general physical limitations. I am 67 and have asthma and a history of respiratory infections, though it was under good control and have had no infections for the past seven years. Because of that history I kept up most of the pre-vaccination precautions I had been practicing. Still, after vaccination, I partially came out of isolation. I was excited to be able to have dinner with old (vaccinated) friends.

Then three weeks ago, on a Tuesday, I started feeling the familiar symptoms of a sinus infection, facial pain and a developing cough. I thought I understood what was happening. After all, I was vaccinated and have felt this way before. By that Friday my temperature was up to 103.4. I was coughing. It was continuous and severe. Every cough hurt my head like being smacked with a hammer. This was unusually bad, but I had had respiratory infections in the past and got over them. I was not surprised when on Sunday morning--four days after the first symptom--I felt good and went out to buy milk. 

Two hours later all the symptoms came crashing back.

Monday to Wednesday, days six through eight, were more of the same. I felt weak. I had a headache. I was coughing. Those three days were a blur and I can barely remember that time except I was not eating or sleeping. By then I had self-diagnosed and assured myself that whatever it was, it couldn't be COVID. After all, I was vaccinated. 

One thing might have tipped me off that this infection was different. When I have had bacterial pneumonia the progression is to less and less lung volume capacity.  Eventually it is as if you can only get a teaspoon of air with each breath.  With this infection I could expand and contract my lungs normally, I just couldn't get the oxygen I needed. 

By Thursday--day nine--at 3 a.m. things were getting worse. I was coughing and short of breath and I decided to drive to the ER. They took a swab sample for COVID PCR testing and it came back positive. I was shocked, I still can’t figure out what I did wrong. They found me a room, admitted me, and started me on oxygen. My oxygen was down to 83%, but the oxygen tubes started to bring me back. I was bedridden but no longer felt I was gasping for breath. They gave me 4 IV infusions of Remdesivir, steroids, and anticoagulants. I was not in the ICU but in a controlled-access room at the end of a hall. There was a lot gowning/ungowning, masks and shields, blood draws and vital signs, and checks at all hours. 

In Recovery

The hospital was stressed but not overwhelmed at the time. I began feeling better. Sunday I was released. That was day 13.

It isn't over. Now, in the third week, I have low fevers, sweating, headaches, chest pain, and can walk about half a block. I’m told to expect weeks of slow progress. 

I had a very rare breakthrough infection with severe symptoms. I was lucky to get a room at that hospital and lucky not to progress to intubation. Several doctors said to me that being vaccinated may have saved my life. 

I am also lucky to have good insurance backed by Medicare. At this point I have no idea what all this is going to cost.