Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Side Effects: How Long They Last (2)

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Why Do You Need Two Doses for COVID-19 Vaccines
This guide will help explain why you need two
doses for COVID-19 of the Pfizer-BioNTech and
Moderna vaccines, and will provide answers to
many other questions, too.
COVID-19 is the disorder caused by the novel
coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. When many people with
COVID-19 get moderate symptoms, others can become
severely sick. Several vaccines have been
developed to safeguard against COVID-19.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has up to
now approved three COVID-19 vaccines for
emergency usage. Both of these vaccines need two
doses.
The Johnson Johnson vaccine has also been
approved for emergency use. However, this vaccine
simply requires one dose.
Why do some experiments require 2 doses? How long
do you need to wait between doses? Have you got
any resistance following the first dose?
How do these vaccines work?
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The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines both use
mRNA technology. The cells within your body
naturally use mRNA all the opportunity to create
many diverse types of proteins which you need to
remain healthy.
The mRNA from the two-dose COVID-19 vaccines
supply the cells of the body with instructions on
how to produce the spike protein thats specific
to the new coronavirus. This spike protein is
located on the surface of the virus. It employs
this spike protein to attach and enter a host
cell inside your body.
If you get your COVID-19 vaccine, your immune
system processes information about the spike
protein and creates an immune reaction to it.
This includes the production of antibodies.
Vaccines hinge on a very important aspect of your
immune system, which is that it has memory. After
your vaccination, your immune system continues to
store info on the spike protein.
This may help keep you from becoming sick with
COVID-19.
The entire immunity procedure typically takes
about 2 weeks following the second dose of
vaccine. That is why you can still contract the
new coronavirus and become sick if youre exposed
to it soon after getting your own vaccine.
Why do the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines
require two doses?
During ancient studies, researchers found that
the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines provoke
a relatively weakTrusted Source immune reaction
when given as only 1 dose. But, there was a more
powerful immune response when a second dose was
inserted.
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Basically, the first dose of the vaccine begins
the procedure of building up protection. The
second dose functions to greatly reinforce this
coverage.
Heres an analogy to help explain this You and a
friend are trying to move a heavy table across a
room. Between the two of you, you are in a
position to get it partway there. Then, another
couple of friends jump in to assist, and youre
all able to move it the remainder of the way.
Vaccines that need more than 1 dose arent that
uncommon.
That the measle-mumps-rubella (MMR)
vaccine vaccines against hepatitis A and
hepatitis B the shingles vaccine
Are there other COVID-19 vaccines that require
two doses?
A lot of different varieties of COVID-19
vaccines, including ones still under development,
additionally require two doses. Some examples
include
Oxford-AstraZeneca 2 doses given 8 to 12
weeks Novavax two doses given 3 weeks
Sputnik V 2 doses given 3 months Coronavac
2 doses given 1 month
Do some COVID-19 vaccines only require one dose?
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The COVID-19 vaccine that has been developed by
Johnson Johnson only requires one dose.
After reviewing effectiveness and safety
information from large-scale clinical trials, the
FDA has given this vaccine Emergency Utilization
Authorization from the USA. How long do you need
to wait between vaccines?
For both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccine,
theres a waiting period between the first and
second dose. The timeframe between the doses
depends on which vaccine you received.
Pfizer-BioNTech. You get your second dose 3 weeks
(21 days) after your first dose.
Moderna. You get your next dose 4 weeks (28 days)
after your first dose.
Why do you need this waiting period?
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The very first dose helps to prime your immune
system. It introduces it to the spike protein and
allows it to create a small immune response prior
to the second dose. Time is required to allow
this procedure to develop properly.
Its also important not to get your second dose
too early, because this may impact the
effectiveness of the vaccine.
According to recommendations from the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), you can
receive your second dose up to 4 times earlier
than recommended.
What happens if you wait for a longer period of
time to get your second vaccine?
The CDC recommends that you get your next dose as
near the necessary period as you can.
You could be wondering what happens if you can
not get your second dose within the specified
timeframes. The CDC has guidanceTrusted Source
for this too. In such scenarios, the next dose
can be awarded up to 6 weeks (42 days) following
the first dose.
We now dont understand if delaying the next dose
longer than this time has an impact on immunity.
If at all possible, try to schedule your
appointment to your next dose on the day you
receive your first dose. If you didnt schedule
your next dose right now, contact the location
where you obtained your first dose to make an
appointment.
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What level of immunity do you have after the
first vaccine?
Even though the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna
vaccines need two doses, so you really do get
some resistance once you get the first dose. Let
us examine this in a bit more detail below.
Pfizer-BioNTech
However, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine may be more
effective after the first dose than was formerly
believed. This advice comes from another analysis
from scientists in the United Kingdom.
These scientists wanted to look at vaccine
efficacy 15 days or more after individuals had
received the first dose of this Pfizer-BioNTech
vaccine. They found that vaccine effectiveness
was really closer to 89 to 91 percent 15 days
following the first dose.
Moderna
In a report submitted to the FDA, researchers
examined vaccine efficacy in clinical trial
participants whod only gotten one dose of this
vaccine.
A vaccine effectiveness of 50.8 percent was
discovered up to 14 days after the first dose.
Vaccine effectiveness was 92.1 percent past the
first 14 days.
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What level of immunity do you have after the
second vaccine?
Pfizer-BioNTech
PFIZER-BIONTECH IMMUNITY
Researchers working on the Pfizer-BioNTech
vaccine clinical trial appeared at vaccine
efficacy 7 days following the second dose. Now,
vaccine effectiveness was observed to be 95
percent.
And what about longer-term resistance? Another
study, now in preprint, looked into this. This
analysis followed people for 63 days when theyd
received their second dose.
The researchers detected a strong antibody
response following the next dose. While the
overall levels of antibodies began to decrease
gradually as time passed, they still remained
high in the 63-day markers.
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Moderna
MODERNA IMMUNITY
Researchers working on the Moderna clinical trial
assessed vaccine efficacy 14 days after diagnosis
participants had gotten their second dose.
Vaccine efficacy was 94.1 at this point.
Researchers also published another study of the
immune response to this Moderna vaccine 90 days
after the next dose. This analysis was rather
small, involving 34 participants.
Elevated levels of antibodies were made following
the next dose. Similar to this Pfizer-BioNTech
study discussed above, antibody levels started to
slowly decrease over time. However, immunity
persisted at high levels at the 90-day mark.
Is the second dose necessary?
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Because both vaccines appear to have high
effectiveness 14 days or longer after the first
dose, you may be thinking about whether the next
dose of this vaccine is actually necessary.
It is correct that there have been discussions
amongst public health scientists and officials
about the possibility of delaying or eliminating
the second dose of these vaccines.
It would also aid in extending vaccine supplies
to more people.
However, there are some concerns about doing
this. Its possible that overall immunity or
vaccine efficacy could be affected. Additionally,
lower levels of resistance could drive the
development of more virus variations that can
escape our existing vaccines.
Further research to delaying or removing second
doses is needed. Currently, the FDA strongly
recommends continuing to adhere to the dosing
schedule that was tested in clinical trials and
authorized for emergency use.
Can you get Pfizer for one dose and Moderna for
the other?
The CDC notes that though there is no preference
for a single vaccine over another, the two
vaccines arent interchangeable. As a result of
this, it is important for your second dose from
the exact same product as your first dose.
This is only one reason why COVID-19 vaccine
record cards are provided after you get your
first dose. These cards give invaluable
information about which vaccine you received
along with the date on which you obtained it.
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Is there a difference in the side effects between
the first and second dose?
The two-dose COVID-19 vaccines have similar
negative effects, such as
Injection site reactions, that may include
soreness, redness, or swelling fatigue
fever chills headache body aches
and pains nausea swollen lymph nodes
Side effects that are felt through the entire
body, such as fever, fatigue, and headache, are
somewhat more common after getting the next dose
of the vaccine. This can be true for both the
Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.
Remember that the very first dose of the vaccine
creates a weaker response than the next dose.
Because of this, youre more inclined to feel
side effects following the next dose.
These side effects are actually a sign that an
immune reaction is taking place within your
system. However, its also normal not to have any
side effects at all. The vaccine will still be
boosting your immune response, even without signs