Sunday House Call, #804, August 22, 2021: The context behind breakthrough infections in vaccinated individuals. #vaccineswork

Reports of increasing breakthrough infections in those who are vaccinated are occurring predominantly in those individuals who are older than 60 years of age, suffer from chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancers, and inflammatory conditions, and may be taking immunosuppressive medications. Vaccines continue to be effective against Delta variant as reported in latest UK study

AstraZeneca is set to report interesting results about a new medication that contains to anti-Covid antibodies given by muscular injection that can prevent the vulnerable who either cannot respond to the vaccination due to immunosuppression or because of their age cannot mount an adequate antibody response to the vaccine. The results appear quite promising but because information came from a press release, we need to wait for it to be published and reviewed.

Your calls and text message questions about:

  • Can an immunosuppressed individual get the MRA vaccine?
  • Why are some vaccines in medications based on specific weights in children and others not?
  • Removal/prevention of ear wax accumulation
  • A person with a history of allergy is fearful of getting the vaccine. What can be done to help support her and provide her with confidence to get the vaccine? Her husband has had both doses.
  • Husband calls about his wife’s blood work that shows elevated B12 and slightly elevated mean creatinine ratio. What does this mean given that she has no specific medical history?
  • A 90-year-old woman experiences a nosebleed today. She has not really had nosebleeds before. She is on warfarin. Her husband wants to know what she should do.
  • A woman with chronic lymphocytic leukemia would like to know if she should get a third dose of the vaccine?
  • Are antibody tests available to check efficacy of the coronavirus vaccine?

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