Jump to content

Menu

The Vaccine Thread


JennyD

Recommended Posts

1 took awhile to get taste and smell back but it did come back. I was on a bike ride with two after recovery and one mentioned being out of breath. The second said, " I blame Covid" and the other said, "I thought I was just out of shape." and laughed.  So I have no idea if that tells me anything. They were biking through snow though and that isn't easy.

 

Another friend did say she ends up with low O2. We were cross country skiing together at the time but not fast but she said there was a difference in daily life too like climbing stairs. 

 

I am still unsure how rare long term complications are. I know shingles comes back to haunt you years later so this could have some element like that but who knows.

I also don't interrogate people so even if we mention in passing that they are recovered or whatever they may not mention side effects so I might be really ignorant of that aspect if they are moderate to medium impact. I'd notice if they couldn't walk to their car.  My sister would tell me too I think so I can probably safely say she doesn't. My best friend would probably also tell me. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, frogger said:

I also don't interrogate people so even if we mention in passing that they are recovered or whatever they may not mention side effects so I might be really ignorant of that aspect if they are moderate to medium impact. I'd notice if they couldn't walk to their car.  My sister would tell me too I think so I can probably safely say she doesn't. My best friend would probably also tell me. 

Yeah, that's exactly it for me, too -- I don't interrogate people, because why would I? So then I don't think I'd know about most people's long term effects. That's why I rather like the forum sample -- I'm more likely to get a sense of how people are doing after COVID. But even that isn't perfect. 

However, I have to say that my forum sample does not make me feel reassured, lol. Even if I skip the stories about "friends of friends" (which absolutely skew severe for obvious reasons), I know of at least 4-5 stories of immediate family members of forum members that would correspond to a disease I do not in any way want to have. Of course, I also know about something like 100 stories that sound mild and like not a big deal. It's a really random disease. 

 

1 minute ago, frogger said:

1 took awhile to get taste and smell back but it did come back. I was on a bike ride with two after recovery and one mentioned being out of breath. The second said, " I blame Covid" and the other said, "I thought I was just out of shape." and laughed.  So I have no idea if that tells me anything. They were biking through snow though and that isn't easy.

Yeah, hard to say. Could mean something, could just be humans attempting to find patterns where none exist... hard to tell. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, frogger said:

I really really wish there was some allowance for people who have lost more family members to jump to an earlier phase. Some families lose so many people while others have no problem. It obviously should be included in the risk factors somehow. 😕

It'd be lovely if we knew the genetic factors that make one more susceptible to it 😕 . 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now that we seem to be getting more vaccination sites opened up in my area, they are closing because of weather conditions 😞  After no winter weather, we won't be above freezing for a week, which is unheard of around here, much less in mid-February.

DH is over 70 with lung scaring from a childhood illness which makes it difficult for him to get over any type of respiratory illness and he still has not been able to schedule a vaccine--he is on several waitlists.  

  • Like 1
  • Sad 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, Bootsie said:

Now that we seem to be getting more vaccination sites opened up in my area, they are closing because of weather conditions 😞  After no winter weather, we won't be above freezing for a week, which is unheard of around here, much less in mid-February.

DH is over 70 with lung scaring from a childhood illness which makes it difficult for him to get over any type of respiratory illness and he still has not been able to schedule a vaccine--he is on several waitlists.  

Same here. Record breaking winter weather throwing a wrench in the works.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 minutes ago, Jaybee said:

I know this was mentioned, but I can't find it. What was said about receiving other immunizations in relation to covid vaccines?

 

The NHS in the UK is saying to leave a week's gap between vaccines for different things, and to move the non-COVID appointment if there's a clash due to the relative difficulty in obtaining slots. In the USA, the advice has been variable, so I would advise checking before proceeding if possible.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 of my friends in Austin got their shots last week (under 50 years of age) and they do not have health risks. Apparently, there is not much demand for vaccines over there and it was available to them.

Edited by mathnerd
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

24 minutes ago, mathnerd said:

3 of my friends in Austin got their shots last week (under 50 years of age) and they do not have health risks. Apparently, there is not much demand for vaccines over there and it was available to them.

Interesting. I have friends in Austin. I’ll check in with them to see what their experience has been. Recently retired special ed teacher caring for her elderly mother. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

56 minutes ago, mathnerd said:

3 of my friends in Austin got their shots last week (under 50 years of age) and they do not have health risks. Apparently, there is not much demand for vaccines over there and it was available to them.

This is why I really wish we had an actual distribution plan and some kind of national coordination. I know of people in their 20s who work from home and have no risk factors who have gotten vaccinated, but my 88 yr old stepmother who is tethered to an O2 tank 24/7 hasn't been able to get an appointment in FL. It's ridiculous. ☹️

  • Like 1
  • Sad 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2/12/2021 at 10:43 AM, Laura Corin said:

Three weeks after first vaccination (mostly Pfizer), 67% protection from symptomatic disease.  In video at at 3 minutes 45 (data from 45,000 contributors):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?mc_cid=ce87b2f843&mc_eid=5df5c35ab8&v=B3YtJYsZuYU&feature=youtu.be

 

That suggests that even just the first dose of Pfizer is more effective, more quickly, than the supposedly "single dose" J&J vaccine. J&J reported 66% efficacy after 28 days and, unlike every other vaccine manufacturer, they purposely excluded mild cases from their stats. Since most cases of covid seem to be considered mild, that suggests they excluded a LOT of cases, and if they reported their actual efficacy rate in a way that was comparable to the other manufacturers, it would mostly likely be a lot lower than the 66% they are claiming.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

re uneven demand for vaccine across states

8 hours ago, mathnerd said:

3 of my friends in Austin got their shots last week (under 50 years of age) and they do not have health risks. Apparently, there is not much demand for vaccines over there and it was available to them.

whereas here, literally everyone I know IRL is champing at the bit for their turn, regardless of age or political party or any other status; and impatiently waiting for their cohort to be eligible to receive it.

It's only a matter of time before we start hearing stories of folks crossing state lines to get a chance at underutliized vaccine allocations in other states where there's more vaccine hesitancy.

At which point I'd argue it will be time to rethink the population-proportionate allocation to states.  If it's piling up unused in freezers in one state and being hoovered up as soon as the trucks roll in in others, it's silly to keep delivering proportionately. Send it where it's actually getting into arms.  I don't think we're at that point yet, but it looks likely we will get there within a month or two.

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, Corraleno said:

This is why I really wish we had an actual distribution plan and some kind of national coordination. I know of people in their 20s who work from home and have no risk factors who have gotten vaccinated, but my 88 yr old stepmother who is tethered to an O2 tank 24/7 hasn't been able to get an appointment in FL. It's ridiculous. ☹️

My sister happened upon some link to get appointments at the hospital for "extremely vulnerable" people and my mom is pressuring m to lie and try to get vaccinated. Sorry, mom, I know you love me, but I'm not lying when there are super high risk people in the area that haven't been able to get vaccinated. My son has PANDAS and my husband has blood pressure issues, but that doesn't trump elderly people on O2. 

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, ktgrok said:

My sister happened upon some link to get appointments at the hospital for "extremely vulnerable" people and my mom is pressuring m to lie and try to get vaccinated. Sorry, mom, I know you love me, but I'm not lying when there are super high risk people in the area that haven't been able to get vaccinated. My son has PANDAS and my husband has blood pressure issues, but that doesn't trump elderly people on O2. 

Do they not ask for any proof when you go get the vaccine?  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Do they not ask for any proof when you go get the vaccine?  

I don't know. It didn't specify what to bring as proof.  I think my sister is going to try - to be fair she has asthma and a lot of lung issues, and she's high exposure working in a school with thousands of students and hundreds of employees all day. So, we shall see. I think she is going on Wednesday. But I do not have those issues, and can stay home most of the time. Our main exposure risk is my 21 yr old son, who works full time in an animal clinic (masks required). 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Do they not ask for any proof when you go get the vaccine?  

I really doubt clinics are going to check.  If people forget their proof do they turn them away?  What constitutes proof?  I think it would be too hard.  It also may be biased against those who don't have good health insurance to need to cough up proof from a clinic.   We really just need to get vaccines into arms.  

That said, I really hope people don't abuse the system.  Especially those that have the financial privilege to stay put and be patient for a bit.  We have plenty of reason for wanting it at our house (2 elderly parents that each live alone, both in our 50's with sketchy family history, DH on blood pressure meds).  

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, FuzzyCatz said:

I really doubt clinics are going to check.  If people forget their proof do they turn them away?  What constitutes proof?  I think it would be too hard.  It also may be biased against those who don't have good health insurance to need to cough up proof from a clinic.   We really just need to get vaccines into arms.  

That said, I really hope people don't abuse the system.  Especially those that have the financial privilege to stay put and be patient for a bit.  We have plenty of reason for wanting it at our house (2 elderly parents that each live alone, both in our 50's with sketchy family history, DH on blood pressure meds).  

Yeah I just didn't know how it works.  But if they don't ask for proof at all, then it really is just a free for all and anyone can just go no matter what tier they are really on.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, mommyoffive said:

Yeah I just didn't know how it works.  But if they don't ask for proof at all, then it really is just a free for all and anyone can just go no matter what tier they are really on.  

I do think it'll be really hard once they open up to those with health care concerns unless they can book those primarily through primary care clinics or something. But then that again becomes exclusive from people without good health care?   Heck, I don't have a primary clinic right now and I do have decent health care.  It's such a hard problem to solve and I could see solutions varying widely based on geography.  

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dh’s employer let them know that vaccines will be mandatory to return to the office. They are planning to reopen late summer but if you don’t get a vaccine you will continue to work from home.

I’m really surprised but it doesn’t really affect us as dh has been working from home for several years now and he only goes in occasionally (and will be getting the vaccine as soon as eligible anyway). 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Yeah I just didn't know how it works.  But if they don't ask for proof at all, then it really is just a free for all and anyone can just go no matter what tier they are really on.  

So, looking at what my sister sent, it looks like it was an email with the link to register for an appointment, which was SENT to patients who meet criteria by their doctors. But someone who got it then forwarded it to someone else, who forwarded it again...etc etc and my sister got it. So I THINK that link is supposed to be for a particular person who was identified by their doctor. 

Again, I'm not even trying. But yeah...ugh. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Do they not ask for any proof when you go get the vaccine?  

There's an urgent care clinic near me that will administer vaccine to 1B groups but only if they bring a copy of their medical records or a signed letter from their doctor stating they need the vaccine. The clinic will evaluate the records when you show up for the appointment. It's effectively keeping anyone low income from getting vaccinated there, because your doctor can charge you a fee for copying records and the urgent care clinic can charge you a fee for evaluating the records. 

If they don't want to deal with the liability of vaccinating people of unknown health status, ok, fine. I understand that. But then don't request a thousand vaccines "for the community" and then gatekeep the community from getting them. 

Oh, and the urgent care clinic I checked into is in a lower-income, rural area.  Neat trick.

Edited by MissLemon
  • Sad 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 minutes ago, MissLemon said:

There's an urgent care clinic near me that will administer vaccine to 1B groups but only if they bring a copy of their medical records or a signed letter from their doctor stating they need the vaccine. The clinic will evaluate the records when you show up for the appointment. It's effectively keeping anyone low income from getting vaccinated there, because your doctor can charge you a fee for copying records and the urgent care clinic can charge you a fee for evaluating the records. 

If they don't want to deal with the liability of vaccinating people of unknown health status, ok, fine. I understand that. But then don't request a thousand vaccines "for the community" and then gatekeep the community from getting them. 

Oh, and the urgent care clinic I checked into is in a lower-income, rural area.  Neat trick.

Hopefully whoever is making these rules thinks this over soon.   I guess when they open it up to everyone in April, it won't be a thing. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, mommyoffive said:

Hopefully whoever is making these rules thinks this over soon.   I guess when they open it up to everyone in April, it won't be a thing. 

It's a chain of urgent care clinics, so whomever is making the decision likely does not live anywhere in the community, and maybe not even in the county. 

It's a money-grab, plain and simple.  

And I'm not convinced they won't pivot to another way to generate income off vaccine administration. My town did a drive through shot clinic with the hospital and made a big point that everyone HAD to bring their insurance card, because they were legally entitled to bill your insurance for administering the vaccine.  They won't turn someone away if they do not have insurance, but the fact that the lead with "Bring your insurance card!" concerns me. There's been SO much misinformation about covid and vaccines already, and I live in a town where 20% of the people do not have health insurance. Will those 20% know they are entitled to the vaccine regardless of insurance status? Or will they just see the part about insurance and not try because they are afraid of getting a bill for it later? 

  • Like 1
  • Sad 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, MissLemon said:

It's a chain of urgent care clinics, so whomever is making the decision likely does not live anywhere in the community, and maybe not even in the county. 

It's a money-grab, plain and simple.  

And I'm not convinced they won't pivot to another way to generate income off vaccine administration. My town did a drive through shot clinic with the hospital and made a big point that everyone HAD to bring their insurance card, because they were legally entitled to bill your insurance for administering the vaccine.  They won't turn someone away if they do not have insurance, but the fact that the lead with "Bring your insurance card!" concerns me. There's been SO much misinformation about covid and vaccines already, and I live in a town where 20% of the people do not have health insurance. Will those 20% know they are entitled to the vaccine regardless of insurance status? Or will they just see the part about insurance and not try because they are afraid of getting a bill for it later? 

Oh wow, that is a mess. That makes me so sad and worried for people who don't have insurance.   I had no idea things like that are going on. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting short podcast on the new trial taking place seeing about the efficacy and safety of using two different vaccines (e.g. Pfizer for first dose, Oxford for second, or vice versa).  It's being investigated to see if it improves immune response, not only just in case of vaccine shortages.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2021/feb/16/covid-19-why-mix-and-match-vaccines-podcast

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

People Who Have Had Covid Should Get Single Vaccine Dose, Studies Suggest (msn.com)

The results of these new studies are consistent with the findings of two others published over the past few weeks. Taken together, the research suggests that people who have had Covid-19 should be immunized — but a single dose of the vaccine may be enough.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

People Who Have Had Covid Should Get Single Vaccine Dose, Studies Suggest (msn.com)

The results of these new studies are consistent with the findings of two others published over the past few weeks. Taken together, the research suggests that people who have had Covid-19 should be immunized — but a single dose of the vaccine may be enough.

Are antibodies created by natural infection biologically different than antibodies created by the vaccine? (I'm trying to understand this.) If they are the same thing, why should already-infected-and-recovered people need the vaccine? 

 

(Edited to add: Maybe this is something that is time-dependent, and we just don't know yet how long natural immunity lasts, OR how long the vaccine-induced immunity lasts?)

Edited by Lucy the Valiant
Link to comment
Share on other sites

37 minutes ago, Lucy the Valiant said:

Are antibodies created by natural infection biologically different than antibodies created by the vaccine? (I'm trying to understand this.) If they are the same thing, why should already-infected-and-recovered people need the vaccine? 

 

(Edited to add: Maybe this is something that is time-dependent, and we just don't know yet how long natural immunity lasts, OR how long the vaccine-induced immunity lasts?)

On the Today show this morning it was a question.  I don't think they really know, but think somewhere between 5-12 months.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Society of Breast Imaging just released a statement saying people who recently got a COVID vaccine may present axillary [in the armpit] lymph node swelling, which could mimic a sign of breast cancer. Since the axillary lymph nodes are near the outer breast, the sight of them swollen during a breast exam could easily raise concern. The statement detailed how professionals should document such an occurrence, and suggested people wait to schedule their appointment to prevent unnecessary worry.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), axillary lymph node swelling was found in both men and women during the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine trials. Swollen lymph nodes are a common immune response that occurs with various vaccines, including the flu vaccine, hepatitis vaccines, polio vaccine, and the tetanus vaccine, according to Forbes.

"The recommendation is to wait at least one month after the second shot and to not get the mammogram in between shots," Scott said. In its statement, the Society of Breast Imaging also said that it would be wise to schedule a mammogram in advance of your vaccine. Doing this could also help put your mind at ease if a lump does form near your armpit after receiving the shot.

If you can't get a mammogram appointment before your vaccine, the Society of Breast Imaging suggests waiting "four to six weeks following the second dose of a COVID-19 vaccination."

 

Don’t Do This Until a Month After Your COVID Vaccine, Experts Warn (bestlifeonline.com)

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Lucy the Valiant said:

Are antibodies created by natural infection biologically different than antibodies created by the vaccine? (I'm trying to understand this.) If they are the same thing, why should already-infected-and-recovered people need the vaccine? 

Take this with a grain of salt, since I have absolutely no medical background, but my understanding from what I have read is that there are several factors that may result in better immunity from the vaccine vs natural infection:

(1) With a very mild or asymptomatic case, the body may clear the infection before the "adaptive immune system" really kicks in, so the body may not generate sufficient t-cell memory. The vaccines are specifically designed to provoke the immune system in a way that will create strong t-cell memory.

(2) The vaccines with high efficacy all rely on a second dose to serve as a high-impact "reminder" and further boost t-cell memory. A mild infection may be the equivalent of a single weak dose of a vaccine, and research suggests that prior infection or a single dose may not provide sufficient protection against the new variants (see #4).

(3) In responding to a SARS-2 infection, the immune system will react to all four proteins (Spike, E, M, and N) to different degrees, and the strongest response seems to be to the N protein. Vaccines specifically target the spike protein that allows the virus to enter the cells, thereby training the immune system to kill the virus before it can replicate. (Note: I've recently seen suggestions that future iterations of the vaccine may want to target both the spike and N proteins, since the N protein mutates more slowly and is also more similar across different coronaviruses, so including it in covid vaccines might provide some protection against related coronaviruses, like MERS, as well as mitigating the effects of rapid mutation in the spike protein.) 

(4) In addition to Novavax's results (so far unpublished AFAIK) which showed that their vaccine was more protective against the SA strain than prior infection, a new study [preprint is here] found that both prior infection and a single vaccine dose generally did not provide sufficient protection against the new variants:
"We find that the majority of T cell responses in recipients of two doses of the [Pfizer] vaccine are generated by epitopes that are invariant between the prototype and two of the current variants of concern [UK and SA]. T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 are known to target a wide range of regions in spike 31. Moreover, in over 90% of these recipients, heterotypic neutralizing titres (NT50) remain comfortably above the level associated with immune protection in recent vaccine trials. However, in a majority of individuals whose homotypic neutralization titres were more modest – including over 50% of convalescent COVID-19 individuals and recipients of a single dose of vaccine – heterotypic neutralization dropped to negligible levels."

 

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

Uh-oh. Did they say why? 

Because they won't have enough data

 

Dr. Fauci on when children may be able to get COVID-19 vaccines - CBS News

 

Anthony Fauci now says elementary students won't get vaccinated until early 2022, after high schoolers in fall - ABC News (go.com)

 

 

Edited by mommyoffive
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, Not_a_Number said:

Yeah, that makes sense. I haven't heard of any trials in kids, so I suppose that's not surprising. It's just a bummer. 

I have heard of trials for kids.  Even in the UK that they were starting one for ages 5 and up. But I hadn't heard of one younger than 12 in the US.   The last I had heard they thought it would move faster because they already had done the adult trial. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, mommyoffive said:

I have heard of trials for kids.  Even in the UK that they were starting one for ages 5 and up. But I hadn't heard of one younger than 12 in the US.   The last I had heard they thought it would move faster because they already had done the adult trial. 

Ah, OK. I didn't realize there were trials already elsewhere 🙂 . 

Ugh. I really hope the adult and teen vaccine gets numbers down enough that we feel safer, at least. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fauci said Pfizer will start studying the vaccine in 5- to 12-year-olds beginning in April. He said that study will take a year, but anticipates data on 12- to 15-year-olds sometime in the fall.

 

 

Moderna, a bit further behind, is in the process of enrolling 12- to 17-year-olds in its trial. In March, they will begin enrolling kids age 6 to 12, then 2 to 6, and then 6 months to 2 years.

Fauci said the timeline was similar for Moderna: sometime in the fall for high school students and not until at least early 2022 for elementary school students.

The new information on when study data will be available conflicts with what Pfizer and Moderna said just a week ago.

Last week, Pfizer confirmed to ABC News that the company has fully enrolled its study on 12- to 15-year-olds and expected to have results in the first half of 2021, while Moderna told ABC News that they expected to have data around mid-year 2021.

It marks the third shift for Fauci this week, who has begun telling the public to expect "normalcy" in early 2022 and vaccines to open up to anybody who wants one in May or June. Previously, Fauci said things would return to normal in mid-fall and "open season" for vaccines would be in April.

 

Anthony Fauci now says elementary students won't get vaccinated until early 2022, after high schoolers in fall - ABC News (go.com)

 

 

From the White House Briefing Yesterday 

Pfizer study of children 5-12 will take one year, looking at April 2022 for results from that. Expecting data from their study of children 12-16 to be available fall 2021.

Moderna study for children 12-18 should have data available fall 2021 as well. Expecting data on children  in spring 2022 at earliest.

Edited by mommyoffive
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...