LET'S TALK ABOUT VACCINATIONS

I want to tell you my vaccination story and then I want to talk about the available vaccines. I’m doing this because I’ve been seeing an awful lot of ‘nopes’ to getting vaccinated and those ‘nopes’ are always attached to pseudo science articles that are misinformative and dangerous. I’m hoping that by the end of this entry some people will make a more informed choice. I received my second dose of the Moderna COVID vaccine on Wednesday. By this time I had heard from a number of people who had received the second dose and they had all of the predicted reactions to that dose. So I was mentally prepared to feel a little crappy the next day. Except it turned out to be more than a little crappy and it lasted for two days with the third day leaving me newborn-kitten-weak. I’m not going to lie. It was awful. But it was awful because I have a strong and healthy immune system. My immune cells were like a million angry Scotts in dirty kilts running across the highlands with swords raised as they yelled their way into battle. My reaction was a common reaction that is being seen in healthy people of a certain age and particularly in women who are generally producing more antibodies on a daily basis.

Last week the U.S. paused the use of the J&J vaccine because of a blood clotting side effect. Six women out of the seven million people who have received this vaccine in the US has experienced this symptom. One of these women died from it. The blood-clotting disorder has been seen in women between 18 and 48 years of age and even though it is severe, it is very rare. The FDA and the CDC reacted swiftly to the pause of this vaccine. It should be noted that the J&J vaccine is not using the same technology as the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. It is made by genetically modifying a virus vector, which is a method that has been used since the 70s to create vaccines. This thing with J&J vaccine should not keep you from getting vaccinated. For some perspective, your chances of dying in a car crash is 1 in 103. Your chances of dying from gun violence is 1 and 315. One out of seven people will die of cancer this year. All of the scientific data for the clinical trials and the review process for all of the vaccines are available on the CDC website. You can read the one for Moderna here: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm695152e1.htm?s_cid=mm695152e1_w . The one for Pfizer can be found here: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6950e2.htm?s_cid=mm6950e2_w . I left them here as ugly links so that you can’t miss them.

The US saw over 60,000 new cases of COVID last week. There are a number of factors at play here. First, is the new variant of COVID that is more virulent. Second is the lack of vaccinations. We are seeing the highest numbers of cases in areas of the country where people are refusing vaccinations. These are also areas where restrictions on social distancing and mandated mask wearing has been lifted. I am going to give you a scenario. You are at a party with ten friends/family. None of you are vaccinated. None of you have been social distancing. You just happen to be carrying the COVID virus, but don’t know it because you feel fine, maybe just a sniffle. None of you are wearing masks and the party is inside. Out of the ten people at the party, four people contract the virus. One person has a mild case. Another person has long term symptoms. Two of those people die from complications due to COVID. If you still think this party, the party where you are responsible for the death of two of your friends/family, is worth the risk then continue to not wear a mask or social distance and opt out of getting vaccinated. That possibility of being responsible for the death of another person made my choice to get vaccinated real easy.

Here’s the deal. We are never going back to ‘normal’. Masks and a little bit of distance is going to be the trend for a long time. When mask mandates lift, I suspect that I will still wear a mask, particularly if I have a cold or the sniffles. I will continue to stay patient and keep my distance in grocery stores and I don’t really see myself ever being comfortable in large crowds. I was never really comfortable in large crowds before the pandemic. The thing from my old normal that does get to happen now is that I can hug my friends. I can travel without quartining for ten days to go back to work. It is an adjusted life that is better than it what it was this time last year.

Discuss your health concerns and getting the vaccine with your Primary Care Physician. Your PCP will guide you in helping you make a choice that is right for you based off correct information.

VIROLOGY 101

I have been asked some questions recently about the COVID vaccine and the flu and the possibility of creating mutant humans because of a vaccine that alters DNA. Not really so much on the last part, but there are people who have been misinformed on how the COVID vaccine works. I’ve answered these questions on a one-on-on basis enough times now that I thought maybe it would be a good idea to share some science here.

First of all, let’s talk about how COVID-19 is different from the flu. Both viruses have similar symptoms. They both contain RNA encapsulated in a nucleoprotein with an outer coating of other proteins. Here come the difference. Influenza contains eight, single stranded negative sense RNA segments. This virus relies on a collaboration between two of its surface proteins, haemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). HA binds the virus to cells and mediates viral entry. Once inside the cell, the virus starts replicating and making more virus particles. NA causes HA to release from the cell surface, which allows the progeny viruses to exit the cell and go wreck more havoc. Those surface proteins on the influenza virus are the reason why you get a flu shot every year. In influenza A that causes seasonal flu there are eighteen possible subtypes of HA and eleven subtypes of NA. That means there are 198 combinations possible. That is just for Influenza A. Influenza B is also a player in seasonal flu outbreaks. There are four known influenza strains each with multiple subtypes.

COVID-19 or SARS-CoV-2 has a single strand of non-segmented positive sense RNA and one main surface protein called Spike, that attaches the virus to the cell surface. When the virus binds, it injects its RNA and uses the host cell to replicate its genome. Then, new virus particles are released from the infected cell. When COVID-19 emerged in 2019, it was a brand new virus with no available treatments or immunity. That is why it has been so easy to spread. There has been concern from people over the speed at which the vaccine for COVID-19 has been made and released. Vaccine development has been a huge collaborative effort and it had to meet the rigorous scientific and regulatory processes put in place by the FDA, the same processes that any drug or vaccine has to meet in order to be released to the public. I have also heard some concern that the vaccine alters your DNA. That is not true. The vaccine targets the cells involved in immunity. Once inside the cell, it relies on that cell’s protein making machinery to create a protein that recognizes the Spike protein on the COVID-19 surface. All of that stuff happens in the cytoplasm. The vaccine does not enter the nucleus where your DNA is stored and it does not have the enzymes that would allow it to incorporate into DNA.

So…would I get this vaccine? Yes. I cannot roll up my sleeve fast enough. As soon as I am eligible, I am getting this shot and then going back and getting the second round of the shot. Our plan is to have a big vaccination party where your ticket in to the party is your vaccination card. Then I am going to hug all of the people. To vaccinate or not to vaccinate is your choice. It is important that you know the consequences of whatever choice you decide to make. The FDA website has a whole list of answers to some frequently asked questions regarding the vaccine. The CDC is also a great place to go for information on the virus and the vaccine.

At the very least, you should get vaccinated so you can come to my party.