U.S. considers lengthening gap between first 2 COVID shots to 8 weeks
Reuters
Published Feb 04, 2022 05:47PM ET
By Michael Erman
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. health officials on Friday said they are considering lengthening the recommended interval between the first two doses of the most widely used COVID-19 vaccines to eight weeks to lower the risk of heart inflammation and improve their effectiveness.
Dr. Sara Oliver, an official at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said the agency was considering making the recommendation for Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) and Pfizer/BioNTech shots during a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a panel of outside advisers to the CDC.
In the United States, the recommended interval between the first two shots of Pfizer (NYSE:PFE)'s vaccine is three weeks and for Moderna's, four.
In her presentation, Dr. Oliver said an extended interval appears to reduce the risk of already rare cases of myocarditis, and that the lowest rates of heart inflammation following vaccination occur if the vaccines are given eight weeks apart.
Myocarditis is a rare side effect seen with mRNA vaccines - the technology behind both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna shots. It appears to be more common among young men.
Oliver also said the extended interval appears to increase vaccine efficacy.
If the agency does change the recommended interval, there may be some populations for which the shorter gap is still preferred, Oliver said, particularly groups where the benefits of earlier protection against COVID-19 outweigh the risk of myocarditis.
The move would come late in the U.S. vaccination campaign, as more than 212 million people in the country are fully vaccinated, according to government data.
But there are still around 33 million unvaccinated people in the United States between ages of 12 and 39, Oliver said, the age range that puts them at higher risk of myocarditis after the shots.
Canadian health officials had presented data to the group earlier in the day about why they had settled on a recommended eight-week interval between shots of the two vaccines.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.