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As a person with MS, taking a disease-modifying treatment; should I get vaccinated against COVID-19?
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As a person with MS, taking a disease-modifying treatment; should I get vaccinated against COVID-19?
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2024-04-27T21:31:30.2920103Z
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Language: EN.
Segment:0 .
Covid-19 vaccination is a hot topic right now, especially among people living with MS who have a lot of questions surrounding this subject. There's been lots of conversations online and lots of conflicting information which has caused concern and also worry for people within the MS community. At MS in the 21st Century, we want to ensure that people with MS have access to up to date and scientifically reliable information about Covid-19 vaccination and MS treatment, so that they feel reassured and can continue to make informed decisions about their care.
As an international group of expert physicians and people living with MS, we have collated some of the most frequently asked questions. Do I have a higher risk of attracting or contracting Covid-19 because I'm a person living with MS? It is currently unknown whether MS is a risk factor for becoming infected with Covid-19, but what we do know is that to catch Covid-19, you would need to be exposed to it.
Therefore, taking practical steps to minimize your exposure to the virus is crucial for reducing your risk of becoming infected. Regular and thorough handwashing, mask wearing and social distancing will help you to minimize the chances of catching Covid-19. If I get Covid-19, will it be worse for me? An important question that people with multiple sclerosis want answered is if they did get Covid-19 themselves, will they do worse?
And the answer is unlikely with certain caveats. It's quite clear now that in large population based studies and these are from registers in different countries, the chances of getting Covid-19 if you have MS is no different to the background population. And that's obviously dependent on you being exposed to the virus. In other words, coming into contact with other people and getting the virus.
What does predict a poor outcome is really all the same factors that play out in the general population. So being overweight or having diabetes, hypertension and having what we call comorbidities, other diseases puts you at risk of getting severe Covid-19. One thing that did come up was older age and people with more disability. And that makes sense.
Obviously, if you are more disabled and have, say, respiratory or lung problems and then you get Covid-19 on top of that, you're going to do worse. And I think the confounder there is not so much the MS, but the complications of MS in terms of breathing problems, for example. So overall, I think the message is if you have MS, you've got no higher risk of getting Covid-19 or severe Covid-19 with certain exceptions, which I've gone through.
If someone is taking interferon treatment for their MS, will it protect them against Covid-19? I'm often asked if taking interferon beta will protect you from getting Covid-19. The answer is no. Although interferon beta is an antiviral agent, the effects are likely to be minimal. And the only way to protect yourself or prevent yourself getting Covid-19 is to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
How do the Covid-19 vaccinations work? Covid-19 vaccines do not contain attenuated or live virus and so cannot cause you to become infected with Covid-19. However, by introducing a small unique part of the virus to your body, in this case, a protein called 'spike' allows your immune system to do some target practice without the need to be directly exposed to the virus. As your immune system will recognize that the vaccine spike [proteins] are not part of your own body, it will start an immune response to build up an army of dedicated immune cells and antibodies and to fight it.
This means that if you were to catch Covid-19, your body will remember that it has seen this protein before and will already have a defence mechanism in place. How safe are the Covid-19 vaccines; will they affect my DNA? Although the Covid-19 vaccines were developed quickly, they went through the same rigorous testing that other medicines go through. It is a common misconception that the vaccines actually affect your DNA.
They do contain a genetic material called mRNA, but that mRNA does not interrupt or change your body's own DNA. The mRNA is used to instruct your body's cells to create a unique protein called the 'spike' protein, which is found on the virus that causes Covid-19. Once your body creates this protein because it is foreign or not a normal part of your body, your immune cells begin to build up antibodies in order to react to that protein.
Will the Covid-19 vaccine affect the progression of my MS or trigger a relapse? There is no evidence that the Covid-19 vaccine will worsen MS symptoms. You may feel a bit warm or feverish after the vaccine, which may temporarily worsen old MS symptoms. However, that will resolve within a few days. Should I stop or change my MS treatment in order to get the Covid-19 vaccination?
In most cases, there is no need to stop taking or switch your MS treatment in order to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Make sure that you speak with your doctor and your doctor can help you schedule your vaccination around your disease modifying therapy if needed. But the most important thing is to talk to your health care provider before making any changes or switches to your treatment.
Does the Covid-19 vaccination stop or deter my current treatment from working properly? There is no evidence that any of the Covid-19 vaccines will interfere with your MS treatment. However, it is possible that some of the MS treatments may interfere with the immune response to the Covid-19 vaccine. The best course of action is to discuss any concerns you may have with your health care team.
Will my MS treatment stop the vaccine from working? It is possible that some available disease modifying treatments for multiple sclerosis could produce a less effective immune response to the vaccine. But you should still be at least partially protected. In many situations, a partial response is enough to be protected or to keep you from becoming ill.
For example, flu vaccinations are only about 60 to 70 percent effective. And as you know, most people do not get flu. Remember, some protection is better than no protection. As a person living with MS, does it matter what kind of Covid-19 vaccination I get, provided I have a choice? Currently, only the use of live vaccines is restricted in people taking disease modifying treatments for MS.
None of the authorized or recommended Covid-19 vaccines or Covid-19s currently in development are live vaccines, nor do they contain weakened versions of the Covid-19 virus. Therefore, the best advice is to take the vaccine which is offered to you first and get vaccinated as soon as you can. Please speak with your doctor about when you should get the Covid-19 vaccine.
Your doctor will know how to adapt your vaccination schedule to your MS treatment plan. What precautions do I need to take in between Covid-19 vaccination doses? Most people with MS will have a normal response to the vaccine and will be well protected. However, it is possible that some disease modifying treatments may cause the person with MS to have a less effective immune response to the vaccine.
Therefore, it is very important that everyone continues to follow the guidelines related to social distancing and wearing face coverings until restrictions are lifted for everyone. Will I be monitored differently after having the Covid-19 vaccination due to my MS? As with any vaccination, you'll be monitored for side effects immediately after the vaccination, likely for about 15 minutes on site.
You may feel some small discomfort in the area of the injection or you may feel a bit warm or feverish after the injection. This may temporarily worsen some old MS symptoms, but will resolve with time. If you have any concerns, you should seek medical attention from your physician.