An update on the the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Covid-19 vaccine guidance showed that a fourth COVID shot may be recommended to some immunocompromised patients.
In August, the CDC recommended that immunocompromised individuals who had been initially vaccinated with either the Pfizer-BioNTech or the Moderna mRNA vaccine — but not Johnson and Johnson’s vaccine — receive a third dose of an mRNA vaccine.
However, that extra dose was not considered a booster, but rather a part of their primary vaccination series.
Read more: FDA panel Gives Nod to low-dose COVID-19 vaccine for kids
Now, the new booster dose can be any of the available vaccines, including the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, according to the CDC.
“We know that six months after you reached a good level of protection, your protection has waned … and we need to boost that,” said Dr. Dorry Segev, professor of surgery at Johns Hopkins University, who is studying Covid vaccine responses in immunocompromised people.
“That’s for people with normal immune systems and people who are immunocompromised.”
Read more: Covid-19 Vaccine Booster Shot Guidelines For 99 Million Eligible Americans
The goal of the fourth dose would be to combat waning immunity.
It would serve the same purpose as a booster dose given to people without immune deficiencies six months after they were initially vaccinated.
The CDC’s guidance reads: “COVID-19 vaccination is recommended for everyone aged 12 years and older, regardless of a history of symptomatic or asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Read more: Woman Falls ill After First Pfizer Vaccine Dose, Dies of COVID-19
This includes people with prolonged post-COVID-19 symptoms and applies to primary series, additional doses, and booster doses.
Viral testing to assess for acute SARS-CoV-2 infection or serologic testing to assess for prior infection is not recommended for the purpose of vaccine decision-making.
Data from clinical trials indicate that the currently approved or authorized COVID-19 vaccines can be given safely to people with evidence of a prior SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Read more: Vaccines Are Safe for Children – Moderna
Among individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2, substantial heterogeneity exists in their immune response.”
However, the CDC assures that not every resident is going to need a fourth dose.
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