CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M. — Ongoing medical research has collected an array of data about COVID vaccines and potential side effects.
The New Mexico Department of Health COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard, March 1, reported that 36.1 percent of the 21,213 people who live in Cibola County have been partially vaccinated, and 20.5 percent have been fully vaccinated. More than 666,199 residents across the state have registered with NMDOH to be vaccinated.
Possible reactions
Most of those who have received their first vaccine dose experienced little to no reaction. The second dose may cause chills and a fever, according to the vaccine research group at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. This type of reaction is an indication of a vigorous immune system response, explained one infectious disease expert. There is no live virus in the vaccine, so people can’t get COVID-19 from being vaccinated, according to health experts who warned that taking pain relievers ahead of the shot could reduce the vaccine’s effectiveness.
Some people have developed a rash within three to ten days at the site of the first shot; this should not preclude taking the followup dose. The second shot can be administered in the other arm. The rash is likely a mild allergic reaction that can be treated with an over-the-counter antihistamine such as Benadryl, explained physicians. The recommended timing between the first and second dose is 21 days for the Pfizer shot, and 28 days for the Moderna vaccine.
The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines “are not interchangeable with each other or with other COVID-19 vaccine products,” according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “The safety and efficacy of a mixedproduct series have not been evaluated.”
The CDC recommendations allow for some flexibility in the timing.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose coronavirus vaccine for emergency use on Feb. 27. This is the third vaccine granted an emergency use authorization in the U.S. behind mRNA-based shots from Pfizer and Moderna. The authorization allows Johnson & Johnson to distribute its vaccine to people age 18 and older. This adenovirus-based vaccine is 85 percent effective in preventing severe cases.
There is no data that specifically details the safety and efficacy of COVID vaccines when administered at the same time as other inoculations, such as the Tdap. The CDC recommends avoiding other immunizations in the two weeks before and after both doses of the COVID shots.
Full immunity following the second dose takes about two weeks. The body has “almost a zero chance of developing severe disease if the [vaccinated] person is exposed to someone with COVID-19,” according to the CDC.
Medical experts recommend that those who have been fully vaccinated should continue practicing social distancing and wearing a mask in public settings.
Curing symptoms
“I think we need to just accept the fact that it’s pretty unlikely that a cure for COVID is sitting in our closets,” wrote Dr. F. Perry in Medscape earlier this month.
Taking Vitamin C or zinc, or both, does not reduce COVID-19 symptoms, according to the results of a randomized study published by The Journal of the American Medical Association, in the Feb. 12 JAMA Network Open.
More than a half million deaths in U.S.
A total of 526,097 people had died in this country from COVID as of March 1, according to https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/.
This number includes 104 county residents who have died from COVID in the past year. Approximately one half of those were community members who had been admitted to Cibola General Hospital, Grants, acknowledged CEO Thomas Whelan during his report at the county commission Feb. 25 meeting.
Herd immunity
The reduction in the risk of infection with a specific communicable disease, such as measles, influenza or COVID, occurs when a significant proportion of the population has become immune to infection because of previous exposure or through widespread vaccination initiatives. Vaccination reduces the likelihood that susceptible individuals will encounter infected individuals. Health officials emphasized that handwashing, mask-wearing, and practicing social distancing are still important factors until the U.S. has attained herd immunity, according https://www.aarp.org/healt h/.
Visit hups://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/ and https://cv.nmhealth.org/ and https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/ for more information.