CDC has approved 4th vaccine dose for some people

[audreyh1]

I hope that’s effective enough. The bA.2.12 variant is reinfecting people who’ve had BA.1.

They’re going to have to test with that variant as well as BA.4 and BA.5.

Or find regions of the virus which hasn’t been undergoing mutations so fast.

No question it’s challenging.

 

[harllee]

Ok I've been semi-following these vaccine approval threads. DW & I had our only booster shot on 12/22/2021. We are leaving on 5/12 for our Wild west camping trip and I'm thinking it might be a good idea to go get a booster for just in case. Good or bad idea? Opinions?

I have gotten all the boosters as recommended. One reason to get it before you go is that there could be a spike somewhere you visit and if you get the booster a couple of weeks before you leave then it would be effective for your trip. You probably would not want to get the booster while on your trip due to side effects.

 

[braumeister]

Another hard-to-explain anecdote.

DW (double-vaxxed and boosted) got COVID two weeks ago (I was out of town). She said it was like the worst flu she had ever had, and experienced a horrible 3-4 days with it. Tested a strong positive (it started showing positive within about a minute).

I (also double-vaxxed and boosted) returned home on the day she had her positive test, and we have been in extremely close contact with each other for the last week and a half, hardly leaving the house.

Yet despite the close contact I've had no symptoms at all and two tests have both been negative (last week and this morning). So it seems there is a lot of room for individual differences in your susceptibility to the virus.

 

[GenXguy]

Well, just got my second booster this morning, almost exactly 6 months since the first booster. Moderna x 4 now.

Way too early to say for this second booster - main concern now is a potential sleep difficulty or a spike in my tinnitus, since those are already big problems for me. Didn't sleep much after the second shot and felt very tired the next day and as if I was in the very early state of a cold. Nothing but some soreness in the arm for the first and booster.

 

[tmm99]

Another hard-to-explain anecdote.

DW (double-vaxxed and boosted) got COVID two weeks ago (I was out of town). She said it was like the worst flu she had ever had, and experienced a horrible 3-4 days with it. Tested a strong positive (it started showing positive within about a minute).

I (also double-vaxxed and boosted) returned home on the day she had her positive test, and we have been in extremely close contact with each other for the last week and a half, hardly leaving the house.

Yet despite the close contact I've had no symptoms at all and two tests have both been negative (last week and this morning). So it seems there is a lot of room for individual differences in your susceptibility to the virus.

Very interesting... I think it's also possible that our bodies process the vax differently. Some people may get more (and longer efficacy) out of it than others.

 

[RetMD21]

Well, just got my second booster this morning, almost exactly 6 months since the first booster. Moderna x 4 now.

I had Pfizer for the first 3 but got Moderna this morning. I am living dangerously by going to almost 7 months this time but coordinated with DW

 

[Chuckanut]

Well, just got my second booster this morning, almost exactly 6 months since the first booster. Moderna x 4 now.

Way too early to say for this second booster - main concern now is a potential sleep difficulty or a spike in my tinnitus, since those are already big problems for me. Didn't sleep much after the second shot and felt very tired the next day and as if I was in the very early state of a cold. Nothing but some soreness in the arm for the first and booster.

I waited 6 months.

I got my 2nd booster after hearing about all those politicians and glitterati who came down with Covid about a month ago after attending the Gridiron dinner party. I was going on a vacation where I would be exposed to many people I did not know (airplanes, restaurants, theater, etc.), in a state that was somewhat infamous for not taking Covid very seriously. So, I learned from the mistakes of my elected leaders and got the booster two weeks before leaving. I was supercharged with anti-bodies. I've done two tests since returning and both were negative. I won't argue with success.

I must admit I am curious as to how many of the 2000 people who attended the recent Correspondents Dinner will show signs of Covid.

Oh, my day after the shot was a waste - I was tired, sore and felt like the heavy weight champ has used me for a punching bag. But, that lasted maybe 12 hours, and I deem it worthwhile. My GP told me it was a sign of a vigorous immune system.

 

[audreyh1]

I had Pfizer for the first 3 but got Moderna this morning. I am living dangerously by going to almost 7 months this time but coordinated with DW

That’s what we did. DH had been almost 7 months, me 6.

 

[harllee]

Covid is very mystifying. DH and I took a major risk and went to the college basketball Final Four in New Orleans a month ago. 72,000 people in a huge stadium, packed, every seat taken, screaming and yelling. DH and I were about the only people wearing a mask (we wore N95s). We did not get Covid (we tested ourselves several times after we returned home) and doing an informal poll of all the people I know from my area who went (probably 100 or or more people), I can find no one who got Covid at the Final Four. On the other hand, good friend of mine went to a neighborhood party inside a house 6 weeks ago. 12 people at the party, no masks but everyone was vaxxed and at least one booster. Of the 12 people in attendance 9 came down the Covid (my friend who caught Covid at the party was very sick and is still having a lot of fatigue 6 weeks later).

None of this makes sense to me.

 

[DaveInMi]

Consider a control group, the people in the White House. I assume they have been vaxed and boosted. Seems that a high percentage of them are getting infected. Harris, Blinken, various folks at the White House correspondents dinner to name a few. In my county (population ~25,000, <40% boosted) the 7 day moving average is <1. I understand this is anecdotal evidence, but it seems there is a reverse correlation.

 

[audreyh1]

Covid is very mystifying. DH and I took a major risk and went to the college basketball Final Four in New Orleans a month ago. 72,000 people in a huge stadium, packed, every seat taken, screaming and yelling. DH and I were about the only people wearing a mask (we wore N95s). We did not get Covid (we tested ourselves several times after we returned home) and doing an informal poll of all the people I know from my area who went (probably 100 or or more people), I can find no one who got Covid at the Final Four. On the other hand, good friend of mine went to a neighborhood party inside a house 6 weeks ago. 12 people at the party, no masks but everyone was vaxxed and at least one booster. Of the 12 people in attendance 9 came down the Covid (my friend who caught Covid at the party was very sick and is still having a lot of fatigue 6 weeks later).

None of this makes sense to me.

All they needed was one person in that group of twelve to be infectious. I imagine no one was masked and they were in a room together. It doesn’t matter if people are vaxxed or booster - with today’s variants you can still get infected and spread Covid to others. I don’t know why vax status is still used as a criteria - it’s pretty useless these days for reducing transmission. It helps prevent the worst of the outcomes if infected.

On the other - I know people who went to a big bowl game and came home positive.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Another hard-to-explain anecdote.

DW (double-vaxxed and boosted) got COVID two weeks ago (I was out of town). She said it was like the worst flu she had ever had, and experienced a horrible 3-4 days with it. Tested a strong positive (it started showing positive within about a minute).

I (also double-vaxxed and boosted) returned home on the day she had her positive test, and we have been in extremely close contact with each other for the last week and a half, hardly leaving the house.

Yet despite the close contact I've had no symptoms at all and two tests have both been negative (last week and this morning). So it seems there is a lot of room for individual differences in your susceptibility to the virus.

I think this just speaks to the fact some people just DON'T GET IT. My FIL is a prime example. No vaccines. No masks. He has done NOTHING to avoid getting sick; plenty of crowds and pretty much living life like it's 2018. His wife had it...but he has not had it. I sometimes wonder this for myself. I have had plenty of times that I could (and probably should) have gotten it, yet somehow didn't. The COVID study I am enrolled in shows that I have a very low chance that I have contracted it (no antibodies from infection, just the vaccine).

 

[Koolau]

I think this just speaks to the fact some people just DON'T GET IT. My FIL is a prime example. No vaccines. No masks. He has done NOTHING to avoid getting sick; plenty of crowds and pretty much living life like it's 2018. His wife had it...but he has not had it. I sometimes wonder this for myself. I have had plenty of times that I could (and probably should) have gotten it, yet somehow didn't. The COVID study I am enrolled in shows that I have a very low chance that I have contracted it (no antibodies from infection, just the vaccine).

Yeah, hope I don't jinx myself, but all through childhood, young adulthood and up to now, I have never been a victim of the various epidemics (and were there pandemics?) I recall my 5th grade class (ca 1957) was always 1/3 empty for a couple of months due to flu. In 1968 the "Asian flu?" devastated my Senior class at university. Never got it.

Soon as flu shots were offered, I always took them and never got "regular" flu. I have been fairly careful and have been boosted for Covid (4th shot - aka 2nd boost coming up soon) so I'm hopeful I'll not get Covid, but I'll take what comes. YMMV

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Yeah, hope I don't jinx myself, but all through childhood, young adulthood and up to now, I have never been a victim of the various epidemics (and were there pandemics?) I recall my 5th grade class (ca 1957) was always 1/3 empty for a couple of months due to flu. In 1968 the "Asian flu?" devastated my Senior class at university. Never got it.

Soon as flu shots were offered, I always took them and never got "regular" flu. I have been fairly careful and have been boosted for Covid (4th shot - aka 2nd boost coming up soon) so I'm hopeful I'll not get Covid, but I'll take what comes. YMMV

I hope I haven't jinxed myself, either. We have been doing a fair amount of travelling lately and are about to be gone again for the next 4 weeks with lots of plane travel. Going to keep my fingers crossed that the vaccines keep on keeping on!

 

[pacergal]

The covid vaccines are designed to boost your immunity, so that IF you do get covid, you have a milder case (hopefully). They are not designed to prevent illness 100%.

We have received 4 covid vaccines, 3 pfizer, 1 Moderna.
I will continue to get them as they are available.
I have gotten Influenza vaccines every year they have been out, never had influenza "flu", despite almost 40 years in direct patient care. Maybe luck, but I will trust the science.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

The covid vaccines are designed to boost your immunity, so that IF you do get covid, you have a milder case (hopefully). They are not designed to prevent illness 100%.

We have received 4 covid vaccines, 3 pfizer, 1 Moderna.
I will continue to get them as they are available.
I have gotten Influenza vaccines every year they have been out, never had influenza "flu", despite almost 40 years in direct patient care. Maybe luck, but I will trust the science.

BUT... There are some pretty smart people saying, "get the fourth shot" and there are some equally smart people saying, "don't get the fourth shot" and both sides of the issue present pretty compelling reasons for both stances. That has been the most frustrating thing about this; the lack of consensus has been mind-numbingly annoying.

 

[GenXguy]

I waited 6 months.

Oh, my day after the shot was a waste - I was tired, sore and felt like the heavy weight champ has used me for a punching bag. But, that lasted maybe 12 hours, and I deem it worthwhile. My GP told me it was a sign of a vigorous immune system.

I ended up sleeping better than usual. And I haven't noticed any side effects today - just had the soreness at the injection site. Tinnitus doesn't seem any worse.

Definitely thought it was worth it. At 6 months and protection waning, while cases are increasing, I knew I needed another booster.

 

[MarieIG]

I'm not going for another booster right now. I will reassess when they finally come out with a vaccine/booster which is tailored to include the current strains.

I do have a "vigorous" immune system. So vigorous that it attacks me on a regular basis. I don't know that it is worth it for me to get it all riled up again at this point in time.

 

[harllee]

For those of you on the fence about the fourth booster--if any of you are in any way immune compromised I encourage you to get it. DH (who has an autoimmune disease) did not produce many antibodies after the first 3 shots. But a few months after his fourth Moderna vaccine he had his antibodies tested and they had significantly increased.

 

[RetMD21]

I'm not going for another booster right now. I will reassess when they finally come out with a vaccine/booster which is tailored to include the current strains.

I do have a "vigorous" immune system. So vigorous that it attacks me on a regular basis. I don't know that it is worth it for me to get it all riled up again at this point in time.

I want one against the future strains but since that doesn't exist, I decided to take what does

 

[badatmath]

I want one against the future strains but since that doesn't exist, I decided to take what does

Same logic here. I booked mine for this Friday. It seems more pointless than the others but heck who knows. It is only a few minutes out of my life to do it.

 

[tmm99]

I got my 4th today (Moderna). Pfizer-Pfizer-Moderna-Moderna. I'm achy and have chills and a slight fever. I guess it could be worse. Just took a Tylenol.

I read somewhere that the 4th shot doesn't benefit you much unless you're immunocompromised. I don't think I am immunocompromised but whatever. Just being old is a good enough reason to be more cautious IMHO. I live in Ontario, Canada and they're only giving the 4th shot to 60+ and younger people who are immunocompromised (for the most part).

I recently passed my 5th month and became eligible for the 4th shot last week. I decided to get the shot now as I'm hearing stories about my friends coming down with COVID (kind of like last Jan).

 

[GenXguy]

I read somewhere that the 4th shot doesn't benefit you much unless you're immunocompromised.

It depends if you consider living instead of dying, staying out of the hospital, or being more likely to avoid long COVID as a benefit. There's a lot of misinformation out there. I was 6 months out from my booster with protection waning when I got my second booster that allowed my immune system to build up more protection. The benefit would be better if the vaccine was reformulated for the current strains that are circulating, but it still offers some protection against BA.2.

 

[anethum]

I read somewhere that the 4th shot doesn't benefit you much unless you're immunocompromised.

Real world data from Israel say otherwise.

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2201570

"The number of cases of severe Covid-19 per 100,000 person-days (unadjusted rate) was 1.5 in the aggregated four-dose groups, 3.9 in the three-dose group, and 4.2 in the internal control group."

"CONCLUSIONS
Rates of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe Covid-19 were lower after a fourth dose of BNT162b2 vaccine than after only three doses. Protection against confirmed infection appeared short-lived, whereas protection against severe illness did not wane during the study period."

 

[Teacher Terry]

I have 2 friends that are 76 and 78 that have had 3 vaccines with the last one in October. Both recently got Covid and only felt like they had a mild cold despite being immune compromised. That seems to indicate that the vaccines are doing their job.