Are COVID-19 Booster Shots Safe?
Because of the continuous rise of COVID-19 cases worldwide, public health agencies saw a window of opportunity to allow individuals over the age of 18 years to get booster shots. The burning question is–is it safe?
What is a COVID vaccine booster?
A COVID booster shot is a second dose of a vaccine given to boost your immune system. You typically receive a booster after the first dose of a vaccine begins to wear off. Boosters are meant to help people maintain their immunity levels for longer periods of time.
Who can get a COVID vaccine booster?
The CDC recommends a COVID 19 booster if you are 18 years old and received the Janssens/Johnson & Johnson vaccine 2 months ago. You also need to receive the second dose of the vaccine 6 months ago. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is the only vaccine recommended for people aged 16 and 17. To add, individuals who have a medical condition related to immune suppression are eligible to receive an extra vaccination.
Recommendations for vaccine boosters
The FDA and CDC recommend a booster shot for all people 18 or older who have been vaccinated with the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna vaccines. People who were vaccinated with the Pfizer BioNTech or Moderna vaccine should get a booster shot if they haven't already received one. However, adults should get a second shot if they haven't gotten a second shot yet.
What do you need to know about COVID boosters?
Anthony Fauci said. "We're still learning about this virus. We know more about influenza than we do about coronavirus.” This just means that booster shots are important because they help protect children from diseases that may be new or different from those they've already been vaccinated for. A booster shot should be given when a child is 6-18 months old. People who have gotten a primary vaccination series need to understand they have high levels of protection against illness or death.
COVID booster vaccines: Are they safe and effective?
Deep Shukla says that there are two types of coronavirus vaccine: those that offer immediate protection, and those that offer long-term protection. He also says that the protection provided by a vaccine wears off over time. A booster shot can help prevent the waning of protection.
A recent phase 2, randomized controlled trial assessed the safety and efficacy of seven different vaccines as a third booster dose after two previous vaccinations. All vaccines except one (the Pfizer-BioNTeche vaccine) were effective in enhancing the immune response at 28 days after vaccination. Inflammatory side effects caused by the vaccinations were tolerable and generally included headaches, fatigue, and injection site pains.
The study's findings, which showed significant differences in the immune responses and side effects produced by different types of coronavirus vaccine, could inform policy decisions regarding the choice of coronavirus vaccines. Studies suggest that the protection afforded by current approved COVID-19 vaccines may start to decline after several months.
Experts suggest that the decline in immunity against Sars-Cov-2 may be contributing to the recent rise in coronavirus cases in the US and Europe. Vaccines continue to provide reasonable protection against severe disease and deaths at least six months after vaccination. Health agencies in the US and Europe authorized the use of boosters for people over 60 years old and those at greater risk of developing COVID 19 earlier this year.
CDC Trusted Sources allows individuals to choose a different vaccination for their booster shot than what they received for their initial 2 doses.
Mixing vaccines together can help you get more protection. A study found that using different vaccines for the first 2 doses could give better results than using the same vaccine twice.
Data on the inflammatory side effects of different heterologous and heterologous COVID-2019 prime-boost vaccine schedules are necessary to make policy decisions regarding the choice and dose of booster vaccines. A recent randomized clinical study called COV-Boost evaluated the safety of and immune responses generated by heterologous (Oxford-AstraZeneca) and homologous (Pfizer-BioNTech) booster schedules in individuals who had previously been immunized with two doses of either the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine or the Pfeifer BioNTech vaccine.
Are vaccines effective to boost immune response?
The study found that both schedules are effective in boosting immune response. Both vaccines produce well-tolerated adverse events. Antibodies are proteins made by our bodies to fight off viruses or other harmful substances. In this case, the body makes antibodies to help fight off the coronavirus. This helps us get better faster. Vaccinated people tend to have lower levels of neutralizing antibodies than unvaccinated people. People who get the vaccine develop antibodies that can neutralize the virus, but these antibodies may not be effective against new strains of the virus. In addition, the vaccine does not protect against all possible variations of the virus.
In other words, the decline of the neutralizing antibody response could lead to limited protection against COVID-19 infection. Vaccination also leads to the generation of memory immune cells that persists even after the infection has occurred, forming the second line of defense against COVID-19. Vaccination helps activate T cells to fight off infections. Early activation of T cells due to vaccination prevents severe COVID-19. Boosters can help boost the immune system against the new virus. These studies suggest that COVID-19 boosts may be helpful in preventing breakthrough infections. Also, the researchers found that the experimental vaccine was effective in boosting immunity against COVID-19. However, the vaccine did cause inflammation in some patients.
All seven vaccines were found to be safe and effective in boosting immune response after two doses. Only Pfizer-BioNTecn, Moderna, Novax, Janssen, and Curevac showed increased immune response after two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech. Vaccines work well together when given together. This means that if you get a vaccine for measles, you should also get a vaccine for mumps or rubella. These three vaccines are called MMR (measles, mumps, rubella). The recent study included 2,878 participants. Participants were recruited at 18 study centers in the UK. All participants received two doses of either Pfizer-BioNTech or Oxford-Astra Zeneca vaccine. These individuals received their second dose of either Pfizer- BioNTech or Oxford- Astrzeneca vaccine at least 10 or more weeks, respectively, before being given their third booster shot.
Participants were given any vaccine listed above as the third shot. Researchers divided participants into two different age groups. Younger participants were those aged 30–69 years old, while older participants were 70 years or older. Half doses of the three vaccines were safe and well-tolerated. Vaccine boosters were safe and well-tolerated as well.
For more news and updates about vaccines, refer to the World Health Organization.