1.
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| Dr. Winsome Christie Clinical Pharmacist/Integrative |
Vaccination is not a new phenomenon. However, the Covid-19 vaccine has created 'grey areas' that have caused controversies pertaining to its use and
administration worldwide for universal and high-risk targeting immunization
. This is mainly because of the
relatively fast developmental time from laboratory studies to clinical trials
followed by expedited approval for emergency use. But how important is vaccination,
particularly vaccination against the Covid-19 virus? The Centres of Disease
Control (CDC) describes the Covid-19
vaccine as “a safer way to build protection.”
As with all vaccines, the Covid-19
vaccine allows you to get natural protection through built immunity that
is attained through the development of
antibodies. The Covid-19 vaccine, like all other vaccines, was made to
protect you and those around you. When people to get vaccinated,
the spread of the diseased is slowed and this helps to build herd immunity
(Daley, 2021). Herd immunity describes
when a large portion of the population is immune to a specific disease (WebMD,
2021). In other words, if enough people
have resistance to the disease, then the disease will have limited avenues for
transmission. Vaccines are therefore
important in helping us to move out of a pandemic (CDC, 2021).
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| Nathine Morgan BPharm candidate |
2. What are the side effects of the COVID vaccine?
Side effects are an
indication of an active immune system and are not concrete signals that the
vaccine is not safe for use. Common side
effects of the coronavirus vaccines reported to and documented by the Centre of Disease
Control(CDC)includesswelling and pain at the injection site, headache, fever,
chills, tiredness muscle ache and fatigue. Thus far, it was reported that the
Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, on rare occasions, have triggered anaphylactic
reactions in some patients (CDC, 2020).
Since the vaccine is now approved for emergency use and will be
administered to the wider population, new and long-term effects are being
observed, reported and documented by governing bodies including the CDC on a
daily basis.
The
accompanying patient information leaflet for each vaccine provides a full list
of the ingredients used in that specific vaccine formulation. In general, the common ingredients used in
the present coronavirus vaccines
are the active ingredient (mRNA or DNA),
lipids (cholesterol), sucrose and acidity regulators (such as histidine, and sodium and potassium salts)
(Oxford University, 2021). These ingredients are present in very small
amounts. The major difference between the vaccines is the active ingredients
used in the formulation and its mechanism of building immunity. For example, Pfizer-BioNTech
and Moderna uses mRNA technology to trigger the immune system to produce
antibodies without using actual parts of the virus. This is much different
compared to other vaccines that use an inactivated or a weakened form of the
virus to trigger an immune response. The
mRNA vaccines teach the body how to make a harmless piece of the 'spike protein' that is present on the coronavirus cell.
When this protein is expressed on the surface to the cells, the body
will recognize it as foreign and will initiate an immune response to build
antibodies to protect against the virus if there is a recurrent or
future exposure(CDC, 2020). On the other
hand, the Oxford Astra-Zeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines uses double
stranded DNA along with an adenovirus, commonly called viral vector
vaccines. Once the adenovirus enters the
cell, it travels to the nucleus and is
incorporated in the DNA strand. Although
it is unable to replicate (a safety
feature of vector viral vaccines), the mRNA is able to read the DNA sequence to
make “spike proteins” to be assembled on the surface of the cells. These proteins are then recognized by the
immune system and an immune response is triggered to produce antibodies
(Ferran, 2021).
As it relates to the excipients used, the
Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines do not contain human or
animal products nor do they contain common allergens such as latex, milk,
lactose, gluten, egg, maize/corn, or peanuts (Oxford University, 2021).
Authors:
Dr. Winsome B. Christie
Clinical Pharmacist/Integrative
Nathine Morgan (BPharm candidate)
March1, 2021
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