Not all COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are created, at least according to an analysis published on August 16 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
If the assessment of the vaccine response in 954 health workers in the Johns Hopkins health system is accurate, those who receive the Moderna vaccine are almost 150% more likely to develop “clinically significant symptoms” after receiving the second dose. compared to Pfizer receptors. prick. Clinically significant symptoms, according to the defined authors, included fatigue, fever, and chills. Modern recipients were also 83% more likely to develop these symptoms after the first dose, compared to those who received the Pfizer vaccine.
However, in general, less than half of the participating health workers (43%) developed these symptoms after receiving the second dose of any vaccine. According to the researchers, only 5% had them after their first shot.
In contrast, those who receive the Modern vaccine may also have more robust antibody responses, the researchers said.
“These vaccines can cause greater systemic and local reactions in people with pre-SARS-CoV-2 infection,” they wrote. “It is unknown whether post-vaccination symptoms are associated with efficacy, and therefore anxiety may arise in people who did not develop a reaction after vaccination.”
In fact, a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with an almost five-fold increased risk of clinically significant symptoms after the first dose of either vaccine, but not the second. However, those with a previous infection who received the vaccine generally had a more robust antibody response after receiving the vaccine, according to the researchers.
In addition, although 953 of the 954 study participants developed spike IgG antibodies 14 or more days after dose 2, with the only exception 1 taking immunosuppressive drugs at that time, reporting symptoms clinically. significant was associated with higher median IgG measurements. In fact, vaccine recipients who reported clinically significant symptoms after inoculation were about 5% more likely to have higher IgG levels, while those who received the Moderna vaccine had almost one. 10% more likely to do so, the researchers noted.
“Spike IgG antibody measurements were highest in healthcare workers who received the Modern vaccine, had a previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, and reported clinically significant reactions,” they wrote. “However, the role of higher antibody levels in the prevention of COVID-19 and the provision of lasting immunity is unknown. In general, the findings suggest that, regardless of vaccine reactions or pre-infection SARS-CoV-2, any of the spike mRNA vaccines will provide a robust antibody response. “
Which, in the end, is all that really matters.