Despite the slow and rocky initial confidence, medical experts are counting on the coronavirus vaccine to eventually end the global pandemic. This is especially true as many infectious variants of the virus have been reported in the US, and experts warn that it could cause a further increase in cases. But a change the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has made in its stance on a vaccine precaution that limits the time between shots could help ensure a smoother rollout. Read on to see what the new guidelines recommend for your vaccination, and for more information on what you need to know before you get the chance, Dr. Fauci just gave this warning about side effects of COVID vaccine.
As doses of the sought-after vaccinations begin to dwindle in many areas, health officials are concerned that speeding up supplies could mean patients will not be able to receive their essential second admission on time, which is expected to be three to four weeks. to the first. But in a statement released to CNN on January 23, the FDA updated its guidelines on the interval between the two doses, saying that a slightly longer wait would not jeopardize the effectiveness of the vaccine.
The agency says it “recognizes that having as many people as possible immunized across the country will help curb the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19 and that it should be a priority,” noting that ‘ modest delays in the administration of the a second dose will, if absolutely necessary, not be expected to reduce the protection by the second dose, and preferably above the completion of the series of 2 doses. “And for more information on the second vaccine,” says Dr. Fauci, he had these side effects from his second vaccine dose.
The FDA is not the only agency that changes its guidelines. On January 21, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated their clinical considerations on how long doses can be separated from each other, and also said that some flexibility in the timing of the booster shot was acceptable.
“The second dose should be administered as close as possible to the recommended interval,” the guidelines state. “However, if it is not possible to meet the recommended interval, the second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines may be scheduled for administration up to six weeks (42 days) after the first dose,” he adds. that “there are currently limited data on the efficacy of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines administered outside this window.” , according to doctors.
The changes come less than a month after the FDA made a strong argument to wait longer than the recommended three weeks between Pfizer-BioNTech doses or four weeks between Moderna doses due to limited stocks.
“We know that some of these discussions about changing the dosing schedule or dose are based on the belief that changing the dose or dosing schedule can help to get more vaccine to the public faster,” the agency said in a statement. January 4 said. Making such changes that are not supported by sufficient scientific evidence can ultimately be counterproductive to public health. And sign up for our daily newsletter for more information.
Other top medical experts support the decision to allow a longer grace period between doses. This includes Anthony Fauci, Managing Director, Medical Adviser of the White House, who sees no cause for concern about the extension of the waiting period.
“Sometimes the situation is stressed where it’s very difficult to be on time,” Fauci told CNN in an interview on January 22. “I do not see a big problem with that if the situation on the ground means that the tension is like that, you can not do exactly 28 days or 21 days.” And if you’re worried about getting sick, this strange symptom may be the only sign you’ve had, study says.