Northeast Georgia’s District Two Public Health continues to provide coadministered COVID-19 and Flu vaccines amid recent concerns from the FDA over possible stroke risk.
Coadministration is when two or more vaccines are given together.
Dr. Zachary Taylor, Director of the Department of Public Health District Two, discussed the benefits and side effects of coadministration.
“It is safe to administer both at the same time, it's really up to the patient,” Taylor said. “You know how you might get a shot and your arm may be sore? They might have increased soreness, or they might feel a little bit unwell 12-24 hours after the shots. That's just your immune system, activating and responding to the exposure to the antigen in the shot. That's what we want to see as a response to the vaccination so that you do develop immunity. ”
Dr. Taylor said coadministration can be more convenient for the patient instead of having to come in for two appointments.
A study from the United States Food and Drug Administration and the CDC noted a safety concern for stroke in adults 65 years and up who received both vaccines.
“The risk of stroke with the vaccination and caused by the vaccination is low, okay. The risk of stroke with COVID-19 infection is much higher than it is with the vaccination itself,” Taylor said. “If people are concerned about a stroke, then it would be better for them to be vaccinated. Of course, with an older population, you're going to see strokes that occur that have no relationship to the vaccine itself.”
Dr. Taylor said any instance of stroke occurring after receiving a vaccine is investigated to determine the cause.
To those who may have a hesitancy to receive vaccines, Dr. Taylor said.
“What I can tell them is that, if we're speaking specifically about the COVID-19 vaccine, it's been given to millions of people. So we have a lot of data about the vaccine,” Taylor said. “Again, there is no vaccine made, that doesn't cause some serious adverse events in some of the population that receives them. But these types of serious adverse events are very, very low. And I will also say that COVID-19 is still around.”
Dr. Taylor said the decision to receive a vaccine is a personal one but can prevent a patient from developing a serious illness.
