Spondylitis Association of America Forums General Discussion General Message Board for Ankylosing Spondylitis and Related Diseases Booster Dose?

Hello! I thought I’d open a thread for people to share whether or not they are planning on getting an extra dose of vaccine, based on new CDC guidelines.

I take Humira and no other immune modifiers. I plan on checking with my rheumatologist but haven’t done so yet.

Updating because I finally found a list of conditions, after much searching.

According to a slideshow released by the CDC following the meeting, people with “moderate to severe immuno compromise” apply. The conditions include people who have been treated for certain types of cancer, those who have received organ or stem cell transplants, people with severe primary immunodeficiency, and people with advanced or untreated HIV.

It also applies to people who are taking certain medications, including “high-dose corticosteroids, alkylating agents, antimetabolites, tumor-necrosis (TNF) blockers, and other biologic agents that are immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory,” according to the CDC.

From


https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/h...-the-cdc-just-released-a-list/ar-AANhrS6

Another source as the first article changed.

https://www.wfmj.com/story/44521192/cdc-holds-vote-regarding-booster-shots

And here is the CDC slide deck.

https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/acip/meetings/downloads/slides-2021-08-13/02-COVID-Dooling-508.pdf

I got my booster shot yesterday. I'm on Enbrel and take no other immune suppressing drugs. I got the shot at a grocery store pharmacy. They didn't require any sort of formal proof of my immune-suppressed status. Beware of the side effects. They were much worse for me after the third shot than after the second. I was as sick last night as I've ever been in my life. Fever, chills, and all-over body aches that kept me up most of the night. If you aren't able to easily take off work, I recommend getting the shot on a Friday so you'll have the weekend to recover.

Winston I’m concerned about just that, even worse side effects. Especially for people like us who are only moderately immunocompromised.

How long did it last?

The worst side effects lasted about 12 hours. I got the shot around noon on Saturday and began feeling tired in the late afternoon. The fever, chills and body aches set in in the evening and lasted most of the night. I had a terrible night and only managed to doze off sometime early Sunday morning. When I got up a few hours later, the worst symptoms were over, and I just had some fatigue, headache, and a very sore arm. Tylenol helped with the headache and arm. My symptoms gradually improved throughout the day on Sunday, and I feel back to normal this morning.

TY Mary Beth for the post.

Thank you Winston for sharing your experience.

I was planning on getting the booster when it is available to me. I wouldn't want to take a shot away from someone else but if there are plenty of vaccines, I'd like it. I'm not taking a biologic, but have had a host of immune mediated diseases AS, PsA, uveitis, uc. plus restrictive lung. Perhaps I should get it while they are still loosie goosie on who is eligible?

RAHMBA, I don't think you have to worry about taking a shot away from someone else. My friends in healthcare around here tell me that, despite the delta variant, they are still routinely throwing vaccine away. They do their best to cluster their shots so they aren't forced to do that, but there's only so much they can do. When I called about getting a shot on Saturday morning, the pharmacist asked me if I minded being "on call" for the shot, as opposed to coming in right away. She texted me later when she opened a vial for a walk-up customer and told me to come in. That way she could be sure to use at least two doses in the multi-dose vial. There are, of couse, inequities higher up the distribution chain where some entire countries are being denied vaccines while richer countries administer booster shots. But nothing you or I, as individuals, do is going to affect that situation.

I got my booster Pfizer shot on Aug 16, after asking my rheumatologist what he recommended. I'm on Cosentyx for my AS. No terrible side effects from the shot but my arm did hurt quite a bit starting around 6 hours afterwards. Got a neckache and headache and felt tired for a lot of the next day. This can happen even when I haven't just been vaccinated. I'd say this reaction was about the same as when I had the 1st Pfizer shot (in February). I didn't have much of a reaction to the 2nd one (in March).

I got my booster a week and a half ago.
I'm also on Cosentyx ( which I love).
The side effects were similar to what I had after the 2nd shot.
A bit of fever for a day and wiped out for a couple of days.
In my area we're having quite an outbreak and I'm seeing lots of vaccinated people getting sick. Mostly those who were vaccinated 5-6 months ago or more, so. .....
I'm glad I could get the booster.