Jonathan Marchand, a resident of a long-term care home in Quebec City, Canada, received his first dose of the New Crown vaccine last December and last Friday he received his second dose, which was the first dose of the Modena vaccine but the second dose of Pfizer. He is not the only person to have received the mixed vaccine. Quebec has plans to give a second dose to the province’s most vulnerable residents, even if the two doses are different vaccines.
Although the first dose of the vaccine reportedly provides a great deal of protection, a second dose is still needed in a timely manner for seniors. Due to delays in the arrival of the Modena vaccine, health officials are preparing to use another mRNA New Crown vaccine, although studies on the effectiveness and safety of mixing the two vaccines are still underway. It may sound like a gamble, but some experts say the risk of delaying the second dose is higher because the more contagious variant of the virus has spread through the province. Some vaccinologists suspect that a second dose of a different type of New Crown vaccine may stimulate immune cells to respond to the various variants.
Dr. Horacio Arruda, Quebec’s director of public health, said recently that there have been reports of stronger immunity to the new coronavirus after mixing vaccines. He said the general protocol is to administer two doses of the same vaccine, but “if there is no Pfizer and there is Modena, I think the recommendation can be changed.” AstraZeneca-Oxford is a viral vector vaccine, and its mixing with mRNA vaccines still needs to be studied, Arruda said. But even in that case, “good immunity” would result.
Quebec’s initial goal was to give a second dose to residents of public long-term care facilities about 112 days after the first dose, 130 days after the vaccination campaign began last Dec. 14, and it now aims to have those residents vaccinated by May 8. With the outbreak hitting long-term care facilities, it’s best to act now rather than wait, said Dr. Gaston de Ceres of the Institut de la Santé Publique du Québec (INSPQ). “For now, even though it doesn’t look perfect, it’s the most logical approach we can use to protect the most vulnerable.” Dr. Sophie Zhang, who is in charge of Montreal’s 15 long-term care centers, said some residents received their first dose of the vaccine more than 100 days ago, and with the increase in COVID-19 cases in the long-term care network, it’s important to give people a booster shot now.
Lisa Barrett, an infectious disease physician and researcher at Dalhousie University in Halifax, said she doesn’t see any reason to worry about safety. She likens the first dose of the vaccine to getting your immune system an elementary school education, and the second dose expands the response to the college level. barrett says: “The first dose of the vaccine sends a battle cry, if you will, to your immune system, bringing those particular troops together, producing a beneficial immune response and then adding some memory. ” “The quality of the immune response after one shot is generally good, but still not very comprehensive.”
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