Cdc Says It Is Safe To Get Other Immunizations At Same Time Of Covid Vaccine
HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Centers for Disease Control previously recommended COVID-19 vaccines should be administered alone with about 14 days before or after any other vaccine.
That guidance has recently changed with the presence of more data on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines.
Although data are not available for COVID-19 vaccines administered simultaneously with other vaccines, extensive experience with non-COVID-19 vaccines has demonstrated that immunogenicity and adverse event profiles are generally similar when vaccines are administered simultaneously as when they are administered alone, the agency explains on their website.
According to HB 1090, Virginia students must have certain immunizations prior to starting seventh grade.
According to the new guidance from the CDC, children will be able to get immunizations such as the TDAP, Meningitis and Hepatitis A vaccines, at the same time.
Some thought that maybe if you got the TDAP and the COVID at the same time, the COVID antibodies may not be as effective as in terms of getting in your system versus the TDAP or there may be a cross-reaction, Dr. Percita Ellis with the American Academy of Pediatrics explained. They did many studies people getting it at the same time a week later, a day later, etc. They found there was no difference in antibody production for either of the vaccines or any of the vaccines.
Dr. Ellis says getting required immunizations is still very important to keep from risking another pandemic.
Shingles Vaccine And Pneumonia Vaccine
Dr. Horovitz isnt a fan of combining a shingles shot with any other type of vaccine. Ten percent of people will be really sick from a shingles shot, and their arm will really hurt, so I dont like to layer shingles vaccines, he says.
Shingles, a painful rash caused by a reactivation of the chicken pox virus, is preventable. The CDC recommends that Everyone over 50 get two doses of the shingles vaccine.
Number And Timing Of Doses
Vaccinate all children younger than 2 years old with PCV13. The primary series consists of 3 doses routinely given at 2, 4, and 6 months of age. You can administer the first dose as early as 6 weeks of age. CDC recommends a fourth dose at 12 through 15 months of age. For children vaccinated when they are younger than 12 months of age, the minimum interval between doses is 4 weeks. Separate doses given at 12 months of age and older by at least 8 weeks.
The number and timing of doses for older children and adults depends on the medical indication, prior pneumococcal vaccination, and age. See Pneumococcal Vaccination: Summary of Who and When to Vaccinate for all pneumococcal vaccine recommendations by vaccine and age.
Summarizes how to implement adult pneumococcal vaccination recommendations.
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Will We Ever Have A 2
Pairing flu shots with the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, a second dose of an mRNA vaccine, or a booster, will make vaccination appointments one and done for many people.
In the future, the process could be even more streamlined. As soon as next year, you might be able to get the flu and COVID-19 shots as a single jaban advancement that will hopefully improve the uptake of both vaccines.
At least one company, Novavax, is working on a combination vaccine. In June, that the vaccine being tested may be a viable immunization strategy. While those results were promising, the study has yet to be peer-reviewed.
These results demonstrate the promising opportunity for vaccination, which may improve the uptake of both vaccines, said Gregory M. Glenn, MD, president of research and development at Novavax.
Pneumonia Vaccine And Flu Vaccine
You can administer either pneumonia vaccine and the flu shot during the same visit, Dr. Horovitz says.
In general, the CDC recommends pneumonia vaccines for young kids, older adults, and certain at-risk people. Pneumovax protects against 23 common types of pneumococcus, and Prevnar protects against 13 types.
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Combination Vaccines And Fda Licensure
Only combination vaccines licensed by FDA should be used . Vaccination providers should not combine separate vaccines into the same syringe to administer together unless mixing is indicated for the patients age and is explicitly specified on the FDA-approved product label inserts. Only 2 combination vaccines, contain separate antigen components for which FDA approves mixing by the user. The safety, immunogenicity, and effectiveness of unlicensed combinations are unknown.
Doctors Support The Change
Richard Watkins, MD, an infectious disease physician and a professor of internal medicine at the Northeast Ohio Medical University, tells Verywell that there was never any compelling evidence for the previous recommendation, adding, I am glad it has been changed.
Watkins says that the move may help more children get vaccinated, noting the convenience factor. Under the updated guidance, families only have to make one trip to get vaccinated instead of several under the previous recommendations, he says.
John Schreiber, MD, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, tells Verywell that the changed guidance seems like a reasonable thing to do.
Schreiber anticipates that some parents may still be wary to give their children other vaccines at the same time as the COVID-19 vaccine, but say that new recommendations are sound.
I dont have any concerns with this, Schreiber says. But, he adds, the CDC and AAP will monitor children to see what happens next. If it turns out that children are complaining about more side effects after getting vaccinated, Im sure the recommendations can be modified.”
The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit our coronavirus news page.
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Unknown Or Uncertain Vaccination Status
Vaccination providers frequently encounter persons who do not have adequate documentation of vaccinations. With the exception of influenza vaccine and PPSV23, providers should only accept written, dated records as evidence of vaccination self-reported doses of influenza vaccine and PPSV23 are acceptable . The rationale for acceptance for influenza vaccine is that the time period of recall is one year or less, making it very likely that correct recall will occur. The rationale for acceptance for PPSV23 is high frequency of vaccination leads to an increased rate of local reactions due to the reactogenicity of this vaccine. Although vaccinations should not be postponed if records cannot be found, an attempt to locate missing records should be made by contacting previous health care providers, reviewing state or local IISs, and searching for a personally held record. If records cannot be located within a reasonable time, these persons should be considered susceptible and started on the age-appropriate vaccination schedule. Serologic testing for immunity is an alternative to vaccination for certain antigens . However, commercial serologic testing might not always be sufficiently sensitive or standardized for detection of vaccine-induced immunity , and research laboratory testing might not be readily available.
Based on expert opinion.
TABLE 3-1. Recommended and minimum ages and intervals between vaccine doses,,,
General Principles For Vaccine Scheduling
Optimal response to a vaccine depends on multiple factors, including the type of vaccine, age of the recipient, and immune status of the recipient. Recommendations for the age at which vaccines are administered are influenced by age-specific risks for disease, age-specific risks for complications, age-specific responses to vaccination, and potential interference with the immune response by passively transferred maternal antibodies. Vaccines are generally recommended for members of the youngest age group at risk for experiencing the disease for which vaccine efficacy and safety have been demonstrated.
Tetanus and diphtheria toxoids require booster doses to maintain protective antibody concentrations . Unconjugated polysaccharide vaccines do not induce T-cell memory, and additional doses might increase the duration of protection. Conjugation with a protein carrier improves the effectiveness of polysaccharide vaccines by inducing T-lymphocytedependent immunologic function . Many vaccines that stimulate both cell-mediated immunity and neutralizing antibodies can usually induce prolonged immunity, even if antibody titers decline over time . Subsequent exposure to such viruses usually results in a rapid anamnestic antibody response without viremia.
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Can You Get Multiple Vaccines At Once
The technical term for getting multiple vaccines together is vaccine coadministration. And the answer to whether this is a good idea depends largely on your age and health status, the vaccines youre considering, how urgent the need is to start building up protection against said threat or threats, and personal preferences, experts say.
As a general rule, there are very few vaccines that cant be coadministered, says L.J. Tan, MS, PhD, the chief policy and partnership officer at the Immunization Action Coalition in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Vaccines commonly administered together include DTaP and Tdap, which protect against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis , and MMR, which prevents measles, mumps, and rubella.
When vaccines are coadministered, they should go in different locations or anatomical sites, according to Dr. Tan. It can be in the same arm if they are spaced an inch apart, he says. This allows your doctor or pharmacist to identify which vaccine caused a reaction, should one occur.
Here, experts break down which vaccines can be given at the same time and which ones cant. Plus, find out why you still need to wear a mask indoors if youre vaccinated.
Administration With Other Vaccines
There are no contraindications to the co-administration of diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis vaccines. You may administer DTaP, DT, Td, and Tdap with other indicated vaccines during the same visit. However, administer each vaccine using a separate syringe and, if possible, at a different anatomic site.
There is a small increased risk of febrile seizures in children 6 through 23 months of age when giving trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine with DTaP according to a Vaccine Safety Datalink studyexternal icon. However, CDC made no changes in the recommendations you may give these vaccines at the same time.
- CDC experts answer your clinical questions
- Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis Vaccine Information Statements
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Early Vaccination Is Important To Prevent Diseases
Vaccines are the best defense against infections that may have serious complications such as pneumonia, meningitis, cancer, and even death. CDC recommends vaccinations before the age of two years to protect children against 14 infectious diseases: measles, mumps, rubella , varicella , hepatitis A, hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis , Haemophilus influenzae Type b , polio, influenza , rotavirus, and pneumococcal disease.
Children are given shots at a young age because this is when they are at highest risk of getting sick or dying if they get these diseases. Newborn babies are immune to some diseases because they have antibodies they get from their mothers, usually before they are born. However, this immunity lasts a few months. Most babies do not get protective antibodies against diphtheria, whooping cough, polio, tetanus, hepatitis B, or Hib from their mothers. This is why its important to vaccinate a child before she or he is exposed to a disease.
Vaccines contain weakened or killed versions of the germs that cause a disease. These elements of vaccines, and other molecules and micro-organisms that stimulate the immune system, are called antigens. Babies are exposed to thousands of germs and other antigens in the environment from the time they are born. When a baby is born, his or her immune system is ready to respond to the many antigens in the environment and the selected antigens in vaccines.
Tdap Vaccine Safety For Mother And Infant
Both CDC and the Food and Drug Administration monitor vaccine safety through the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System , a national vaccine safety surveillance program. Published studies that include VAERS data support the safe use of Tdap during pregnancy. To date, VAERS has not found any safety signals among pregnant women or their babies after Tdap vaccination. Administering the vaccine during pregnancy does not put your patients at increased risk for pregnancy complications like low birth weight or preterm delivery.
Pregnant women have been getting both tetanus and diphtheria toxoids and tetanus toxoid vaccines worldwide since the 1960s to prevent neonatal tetanus. Td and TT vaccines administered during pregnancy have not been shown to harm either the mother or baby/fetus.
See the Pregnancy and Whooping Cough Research page for a list of published articles specific to preventing pertussis in infants, including safety studies.
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Why You Shouldn’t Mix Flu Shots With Other Vaccines
It’s that time of year again. No, not autumn, when all the leaves turn to beautiful shades of red and yellow. No, not postseason baseball showdowns. And no, not the new fall television line-up of cop shows and medical dramas.
I’m talking flu shots. Every October the new flu shots come out, people panic that this may be the worst flu season ever, and everyone scrambles to get injected. I won’t bore you with all the pros and cons of whether or not you should get a flu shot. I want to focus on making sure those of you who get one are doing so in the safest manner possible.
Make sure you get the flu shot without any other simultaneous vaccines. Why? Because flu shots have not been studied for safety when simultaneously given with any other vaccines. How do I know this? It’s written in every single flu shot product insert. Go to section 7.1 for most brands of the flu vaccine and you will find a version of the following statement: “There are no data to assess the concomitant administration of with other vaccines.” In plain English: Scientists haven’t studied what the side effects might be when the flu shot is given at the same time as any other vaccines. Some brands don’t have a section 7 and don’t make any mention of safety research with other vaccines.
You can check through the flu vaccine product inserts yourself here.
Robert W. Sears, MD, FAAP is a pediatrician and the author of “The Vaccine Book.”
Spacing Of Multiple Doses Of The Same Antigen
Vaccination providers should adhere to recommended vaccination schedules . Administration at recommended ages and in accordance with recommended intervals between doses of multidose antigens provides optimal protection.
Administration of doses of a multidose vaccine using intervals that are shorter than recommended might be necessary in certain circumstances, such as impending international travel or when a person is behind schedule on vaccinations but needs rapid protection. In these situations, an accelerated schedule can be implemented using intervals between doses that are shorter than intervals recommended for routine vaccination . The accelerated or minimum intervals and ages for scheduling catch-up vaccinations. Vaccine doses should not be administered at intervals less than these minimum intervals or at an age that is younger than the minimum age.*
Certain vaccines produce increased rates of local or systemic reactions in certain recipients when administered more frequently than recommended . Careful record keeping, maintenance of patient histories, use of immunization information systems , and adherence to recommended schedules can decrease the incidence of such reactions without adversely affecting immunity.
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What This Means For You
As flu season approaches, the CDC is advising people to get their flu shot by the end of October. If you have not yet received all your initial COVID vaccine dose or doses, or if you are eligible for a booster dose, its safe to get both vaccines on the same day.
The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit our coronavirus news page.
What’s The Safest Covid
Since the COVID-19 pandemic started, everyone has been looking forward to post-coronavirus life. And most people agree that to get there, we need to follow the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and protect ourselves. From the implementation of COVID-19 vaccine mandates and the Food and Drug Administrations emergency use authorization of a smaller dose of Pfizers coronavirus vaccine for kids to an influx of public service announcements about scheduling your annual flu shot, vaccines are getting lots of airtime lately. It can be tempting to kill several birds with one stone , but whats the ideal COVID-19 vaccine and flu vaccine spacing per the CDC?
Whether youre fully vaccinated and looking at the prospect of a booster shot coinciding with your flu jab or youre getting the COVID-19 vaccine for the first time, heres what you need to know.
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Is It Safe To Get Both Shots At Once
According to the CDC, current guidance has shown that COVID-19 vaccines can be coadministered with other vaccines, including influenza vaccines.
Lisa Grohskopf, MD, MPH, a medical officer in the influenza division at CDC, tells Verywell that while weve said recently when asked that its safe to get both vaccines, this is the first published notice.
The CDCs recommendation to give both shots at the same vaccine appointment is an update to previous guidance, which stated that people should wait 14 days between the COVID-19 and other vaccines.
According to the CDC, the guidance changed because experience with other vaccines has shown that the way our bodies develop protection, known as an immune response, after getting vaccinated and possible side effects of vaccines are generally the same when given alone or with other vaccines.