Getting the Covid Vaccine

[tbyers11]

Help me understand this please:

For the Moderna vaccine, “A vaccine effectiveness of 50.8 percent was found up to 14 days after the first dose. Vaccine effectiveness was 92.1 percent beyond the first 14 days.”

What exactly is this measuring? A fortnight after my first dose, am I 50% less likely to contract COVID? Or will the virus only be at 50% strength? Or 50% less prevalent in my body?

Dumb question I am sure, but I am confused at to what this means in practical terms.

Mostly your first point. Vaccinees got COVID cases at a certain rate compared to placebo in the trial. Specifically, It is an odds ratio calculation. In the first 14 days, the vaccinated group had 50.8 fewer infections than the placebo group. At all time points greater than 14 days after first shot there were 92.8 fewer cases in the vaccinated than placebo group. Vaccines takes time to build immunity, so one should still be very cautious in the first couple of weeks, but there is no mathematical formula of how effective a vaccine is from day 5 to 10 to 15

Moderna EUA.jpg

[OldPhiKap]

Mostly your first point. Vaccinees got COVID cases at a certain rate compared to placebo in the trial. Specifically, It is an odds ratio calculation. In the first 14 days, the vaccinated group had 50.8 fewer infections than the placebo group. At all time points greater than 14 days after first shot there were 92.8 fewer cases in the vaccinated than placebo group. Vaccines takes time to build immunity, so one should still be very cautious in the first couple of weeks, but there is no mathematical formula of how effective a vaccine is from day 5 to 10 to 15

Moderna EUA.jpg

Thank you for this response, and thanks to the other responders as well. Makes sense.

[dudog84]

Sorry if this was covered in the past and I missed it, hard to keep up with everything.

I got my 2nd Shingrix shot 17 days ago, left arm is completely back to normal. I get my first Moderna COVID on Wednesday...should I get it in the right (my dominant) arm since I recently had that other vaccine in the left?

Slightly concerned about reaction issues in my dominant arm, but it is far more important to me that I do not tinker with the effectiveness of the COVID shot, and possibly should not be sticking the same arm again.

Hope that's not a stupid question. Thanks in advance!

[DukieInKansas]

I was just able to confirm an appointment for Monday!

Some of you know this already but I had cancer and had my left lung removed and a lot of patch work done on my heart.

It is such a relief to see this coming. I've been extremely safe for a year but I sent my two high-schoolers back in-person last week and it had/has me a little more concerned.

Just a little while longer!

Terrific news! I hope you are doing well after the first shot.

Kansas just opened to Tiers 3 and 4 - I'm in 3 due to my job. Now the search for a place to get a shot begins. I've signed up for alerts from the county, a pharmacy, and two health systems. Fingers crossed.

[rsvman]

Sorry if this was covered in the past and I missed it, hard to keep up with everything.

I got my 2nd Shingrix shot 17 days ago, left arm is completely back to normal. I get my first Moderna COVID on Wednesday...should I get it in the right (my dominant) arm since I recently had that other vaccine in the left?

Slightly concerned about reaction issues in my dominant arm, but it is far more important to me that I do not tinker with the effectiveness of the COVID shot, and possibly should not be sticking the same arm again.

Hope that's not a stupid question. Thanks in advance!

I would advise getting it in your dominant arm. Tends to lead to slightly less soreness because you use it more.

[Nrrrrvous]

Terrific news! I hope you are doing well after the first shot.

Kansas just opened to Tiers 3 and 4 - I'm in 3 due to my job. Now the search for a place to get a shot begins. I've signed up for alerts from the county, a pharmacy, and two health systems. Fingers crossed.

Good Luck!

First Pfizer shot down today. Very slight soreness in the arm but nothing else. So far, so good!

[dudog84]

I would advise getting it in your dominant arm. Tends to lead to slightly less soreness because you use it more.

Thank you rsvman! Will do.

[Nrrrrvous]

Got the first Pfizer on Monday. Yesterday was a walking zombie. No real aches/pains/fever but I was exhausted all day. Took a 1/2 hour nap at around 10AM (extremely unusual for me to sleep during the day), and still was just kind of "out of it" all day.

Much better today!

[cspan37421]

Got Moderna #1 yesterday off a waitlist ... that I signed up for that very morning! So did Mrs. cspan.

within a few hours, I had a nearly dead arm, despite having made a point to do "arm day" with the weights after the shot. Wow was it sore. Anyway, wouldn't trade that soreness for another day of unvaccinated status.

If things play out as scheduled, we will be fully vaccinated (incl. the 2-week post-2nd-shot time) in advance of sonCspan's college graduation on Mother's Day.

I have heard of luck calling around for waitlists, but some require you to go in person to be added. Some places had no vaccines at all, and weren't keeping a waitlist. Some places had a rather short waitlist and acted optimistic about our chances. Others had vaccines but a long waitlist that had never been touched. It was all over the place. My impression is that a good waitlist strategy involves seeking opportunities off the beaten path, whether in location of provider, or popularity of retail establishment.

[OldPhiKap]

Georgia opening up more, I signed 16-year old SonPK up this morning for a shot on Saturday. Mrs.PK gets her first shot tomorrow. (DaughterPK signed up out of state @ college)

[CDu]

Georgia opening up more, I signed 16-year old SonPK up this morning for a shot on Saturday. Mrs.PK gets her first shot tomorrow. (DaughterPK signed up out of state @ college)

That's fantastic!

I got my first dose of the Pfizer vaccine yesterday. So far, just a little soreness in my shoulder but no fatigue/chills/fever/anything else. Hopefully the same is true for SonPK and Mrs.PK as well!

[DukieInKansas]

Still waiting - if anyone has a contact in Kansas (Kansas City metro area) that I can exploit, I'll send you a pie or homemade cookies of your choice.

I'm would be very happy to get on a wait list and I am in one of the open tiers according to state guidelines.

[TNDukeFan]

I tried to some snooping in the thread, please point me if this is incredibly redundant...
Are there any best practices pre- and post-shot? I'm 62, skinny, runner/mtn biker...
Specifically, I saw a link 'way back in this thread about painkillers not being a good idea but that post seemed to languish unaddressed (probably for the obvious reason).

Thanks all.

[Rich]

I tried to some snooping in the thread, please point me if this is incredibly redundant...
Are there any best practices pre- and post-shot? I'm 62, skinny, runner/mtn biker...
Specifically, I saw a link 'way back in this thread about painkillers not being a good idea but that post seemed to languish unaddressed (probably for the obvious reason).

Thanks all.

I've had Pfizer #2 and was told by the nurse to avoid Advil (ibuprofen) but OK to take Tylenol (acetaminophen) only if necessary. Here's an article from WebMD with info from the CDC. There are concerns about a reduction in antibodies.

https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid...-covid-vaccine

[mph]

Georgia opening up more, I signed 16-year old SonPK up this morning for a shot on Saturday. Mrs.PK gets her first shot tomorrow. (DaughterPK signed up out of state @ college)

Same in Virginia. I got my 2nd Pfizer on Monday. Today, I signed up my two 17 year olds for their first shots on Sunday.

[wilson]

Question for rsvman et al:

Now that lots of states are rapidly expanding vaccine eligibility, can anyone provide an educated guess as to when we'll have our school-aged population either vaccinated or safe enough to attend full live school? For example, Georgia today opened eligibility to all residents age 16 and over.
What about the under-16s? Do they figure to be eligible soon(ish)? Or is the prevailing wisdom still that younger children are not significant spread vectors?
Basically, I'm wondering how much longer it's likely to be before I can come to school with all my kids and all my colleagues and no masks (recognizing that that's a difficult question with a wide array of possible answers and contingencies).

[CDu]

Question for rsvman et al:

Now that lots of states are rapidly expanding vaccine eligibility, can anyone provide an educated guess as to when we'll have our school-aged population either vaccinated or safe enough to attend full live school? For example, Georgia today opened eligibility to all residents age 16 and over.
What about the under-16s? Do they figure to be eligible soon(ish)? Or is the prevailing wisdom still that younger children are not significant spread vectors?
Basically, I'm wondering how much longer it's likely to be before I can come to school with all my kids and all my colleagues and no masks (recognizing that that's a difficult question with a wide array of possible answers and contingencies).

They haven't had studies in kids under 16 read out yet, so I think it'll still be a while yet before the kids can be vaccinated. Moderna has a study in ages 12-16 that they hope will read out in the Spring. So presumably not long after that maybe 12+ can get vaccinated, assuming the results are positive (it's harder to find efficacy differences in children as they don't appear to contract the disease as readily). Someone was surmising that middle- and high-school aged kids could be vaccinated in the Fall. Moderna has just started a study in under 12s, where they will work their way downward in age after they find it safe in older kids.

Pfizer has only just started a study of 12+ kids, so they will lag behind Moderna by a fair amount. And they haven't reported about a trial in under 12s.

[sagegrouse]

I tried to some snooping in the thread, please point me if this is incredibly redundant...
Are there any best practices pre- and post-shot? I'm 62, skinny, runner/mtn biker...
Specifically, I saw a link 'way back in this thread about painkillers not being a good idea but that post seemed to languish unaddressed (probably for the obvious reason).

Thanks all.

I took Tylenol through the day after a 7:20A shot and, although a bit weary on the day of the shot, was totally fine the next day. The second shot required two days of extra Tylenol doses but nothing more than fatigue. My arm was sore both times -- really no big deal.

[Bluedog]

I tried to some snooping in the thread, please point me if this is incredibly redundant...
Are there any best practices pre- and post-shot? I'm 62, skinny, runner/mtn biker...
Specifically, I saw a link 'way back in this thread about painkillers not being a good idea but that post seemed to languish unaddressed (probably for the obvious reason).

Thanks all.

I took Tylenol through the day after a 7:20A shot and, although a bit weary on the day of the shot, was totally fine the next day. The second shot required two days of extra Tylenol doses but nothing more than fatigue. My arm was sore both times -- really no big deal.

https://www.goodrx.com/blog/avoid-pa...re%20with%20it.
Consensus generally seems to avoid painkillers right BEFORE the shot (and the CDC explicitly states this), but it's okay after. Some are paranoid and are avoiding it after, though, but that isn't really based on any data.

[DukieInKansas]

Terrific news! I hope you are doing well after the first shot.

Kansas just opened to Tiers 3 and 4 - I'm in 3 due to my job. Now the search for a place to get a shot begins. I've signed up for alerts from the county, a pharmacy, and two health systems. Fingers crossed.

Didn't hear from any of them but managed to get signed up at a local pharmacy - trying multiple times to see if they had any shots. Get my first Pfizer in the morning.

Still waiting - if anyone has a contact in Kansas (Kansas City metro area) that I can exploit, I'll send you a pie or homemade cookies of your choice.

I'm would be very happy to get on a wait list and I am in one of the open tiers according to state guidelines.

Someone must have said something to the scheduling gods. Local twitter vaccine source would tweet that a place had appointments and they would be gone in 20 minutes or less. I, somehow, managed to catch one and got scheduled. Much dancing and rejoicing around here.