FIRE SEASON IS COMING. AND SO I THINK IT’S I THINK IT’S I THINK IT’S TIMELY TO TO GET GOING.
>> THE FDA SIGNED OFF AND NOW
TODAY A CDC ADVISORY PANEL HAS
GIVEN A GREEN LIGHT TO NEW
COVID-19 BOOSTER FOR WHO WHO
SHOULD BE GETTING MEANS AND
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT
THE VACCINE AT THIS POINT IN
THE PANDEMIC. DOCTOR, TESS
BARTON, AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE
SPECIALIST WITH UT HEALTH SAN
ANTONIO, JOINING US TODAY IN
OUR Q A TO TALK ABOUT ALL OF
THOSE THINGS AND MORE DOCTOR.
MARTIN, THANKS FOR BEING HERE.
FIRST OF ALL, LET’S TALK ABOUT
WHO WHO SHOULD BE GETTING THESE
BOOSTERS RIGHT NOW. THANKS FOR
HAVING ME. FIRST OF ALL.
YEAH. SO THE RECOMMENDATION FOR
THE NEW WITH WHAT’S CALLED THE
BIBLE AND BOOSTER BECAUSE IT
HAS OR THE OLD VERSION
OF OF.
>> OF CORONAVIRUS. PLUS THE
OMICRON THE LATEST OMICRON
VARIANT IS FOR FOR THE PFIZER,
ONE FOR PEOPLE 12 AND UP AND
FOR THE MODERNA VACCINE FOR
PEOPLE
18 AND UP WHO AND SO AS FAR AS
WHO SHOULD GET IT LIKE REALLY,
YOU KNOW, AS USUAL, THE PEOPLE
WERE THE HIGHEST RISK SHOULD
REALLY BE, YOU KNOW, RUNNING
TO BE FIRST IN LINE, WHETHER
THOSE IMMUNOCOMPROMISED PEOPLE
OR OLDER PEOPLE OR PEOPLE WITH
HEALTH CONDITIONS AND HEALTH
CARE WORKERS, BUT IT’S
AVAILABLE FOR ANY OF THOSE
GROUPS. WHAT THEIR CONCERNS OUT
THERE THAT THIS WAS MAYBE.
>> TO FAST TRACK, THAT IT WAS
ONLY TESTED ON MICE. DIDN’T GO
THROUGH THE HUMAN TRIALS LIKE
SOME OF THE SHOTS. DID YOUR
REACTION TO THAT? IS IT SAFE?
>> SO, YEAH. SO I THINK ALWAYS
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS IS
THE SAFETY PROFILE. AND SO
ESSENTIALLY THIS VACCINE IS THE
SAME LIKE THAT. BOTH OF THE
VACCINES, THE PFIZER AND
MODERNA VACCINES ARE THE SAME
AS
AS THE PREVIOUS VACCINES AS
FAR AS THEIR INGREDIENTS AND
THINGS LIKE THAT, THAT THING
THAT’S DIFFERENT IS THE LITTLE
MRNA THERE’S A NEW MRNA CODE
BUT THE REST OF THE VACCINE
REMAINS THE SAME. SO THAT
SAFETY PROTOCOLS AND EXPECTED
TO BE THE SAME.
AS FAR AS THE MOUSE TRIALS IN
HUMAN TRIALS, THE INFORMATION
THAT THE FDA USE FOR THIS WAS
A COMBINATION, OF COURSE, LIKE
THE EXPERIENCE THAT WE’VE HAD
WITH THE MILLIONS OF DOSES OF
THE PRETENSE THAT PREVIOUS
VERSION OF THIS SAME MRNA
VACCINE AS WELL AS IT HUMAN
INFORMATION FOR AN EARLIER
VERSION OF THE BIVALENT VACCINE
THAT HOUSTON EARLIER OMICRON
WHICH IS NOW GONE, RIGHT?
IT’S GONE AND PASS. AND THEN
THE MOUSE DATA WAS FOR THE
LATEST OMICRON SHOWING THAT
THEY MOUNT AN IMMUNE RESPONSE.
AND SO AS FAR AS THE SAFETY AND
I’M NOT CONCERNED, WE EXPECT
THE SAFETY PROFILE TO BE THE
SAME AND TO BE GOOD IT’S THAT
EFFECTIVENESS. PEACE HASN’T
BEEN FULLY STUDIED IN HUMANS.
AND THAT’S WHAT I WANTED TO
ASK ABOUT. 2. IT SEEMS LIKE.
THIS THING FOR A WHILE AND I’M
GUESSING STILL HAS BEEN JUST
DEVELOPING IN THE NEW VARIANTS
AND SUBVARIANTS AND THINGS LIKE
THAT THAT WE’RE SEEING. HOW
MUCH CONCERN IS THERE?
>> THIS WILL BE KEEPING UP WITH
WHAT WE’RE SEEING IS THE
STAYING MORSE THROUGH THEIR
DIFFERENT VARIANTS.
>> AND THAT’S EXACTLY THE
PERFECT QUESTION BECAUSE
BECAUSE THIS IS ALWAYS THE
PROBLEM THAT WE HAVE WITH
THINGS THAT CHANGE AND EVOLVE
IS THAT WE’VE BEEN CONTINUOUSLY
CHASING THE VARIANCE. AND BY
THE TIME, YOU KNOW, BY THE TIME
WE HAVE THE VACCINE FULLY READY
TO GO AND FULLY STUDIED THAT
VARIANT IS GONE. AND SO SO
ACTUALLY IT’S KIND OF EXCITING
THAT THIS MRNA TECHNOLOGY
ALLOWS US TO BE SORT OF FASTER.
IN IN ADJUSTING AND UPDATING A
VACCINE SO THAT WE CAN, YOU
KNOW, GET GET A VACCINE.
THAT’S FOR WHAT’S GOING ON
RIGHT NOW. RIGHT? SO THAT THE
OMICRON VARIANT THAT’S IN THIS
VACCINE IS STILL THE MAJORITY
CIRCULATING VARIANT, WHICH IS
NOT WE’VE HAD PREVIOUSLY AND SO
AND SO I THINK THAT THAT’S
ACTUALLY A A PLUS OF THIS
VACCINE AND END OF THIS NEW
WAY OF DOING VACCINES IS THAT
WE CAN BE MAYBE A LITTLE BIT
IN HOW WE REACT TO NEW VIRUSES.
AND SPEAKING OF TIMING, THERE’S
ALWAYS A LITTLE BIT OF COVID
MATH WHEN THERE’S INTO BOOSTER
THAT’S APPROVED. YOU THINK
ABOUT OKAY. HOW LONG HAS IT
BEEN SINCE MY LAST SHOT?
>> I GOT THE FIRST 2 ROUNDS.
SO AT THIS POINT, CAN YOU TALK
ABOUT TIMING FOR SOMEBODY WHO
WANTS TO GO OUT AND GET THIS
NEWEST ROUND. HOW LONG SHOULD
THEY WAIT FROM THEIR LAST
BOOSTER?
>> YES. SO THE RECOMMENDATION
IS THAT IS THAT THEY SHOULD
WAIT AT LEAST 2 MONTHS SINCE
THEIR LAST COVID VACCINE.
AND THAT COULD BE A LITTLE BIT
LONGER. YOU KNOW, THERE ARE
SOME DATA THAT IF YOU WAIT A
LITTLE BIT LONGER, YOU MIGHT
GET THE BETTER BOOSTING EFFECT.
BUT THE MINIMUM, THE MINIMUM
INTERVAL FROM THE LAST TIME YOU
GOT A COVID VACCINE IS 2 IT’S
NOT OFFICIALLY TO SAY FROM THE
LAST TIME THAT YOU HAD A COVID
INFECTION. BUT THAT PROBABLY
HOLD PRETTY TRUE FOR THE LAST
COVID INFECTION AS WELL.
>> YOUR SPECIALTY IS PEDIATRIC
INFECTIOUS DISEASES. SO I’M
CURIOUS WHAT YOU’RE SEEING IN
KIDS ARE ARE MORE AND MORE KIDS
LOCALLY GETTING VACCINATED.
>> YOU KNOW, WE WE WE ARE ARE
VACCINE ARE VACCINE NUMBERS AND
CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT NEARLY
WHAT THEY ARE IN ADULTS.
BUT, YOU KNOW, I’VE SEEN LOTS
OF KIDS WHO’VE BEEN VACCINATED.
YOU KNOW, WE HAD A LOT OF KIDS
OVER THIS PAST OVER THE SUMMER
WHO HAD THE OMICRON INFECTION
AND MANY WERE HOSPITALIZED.
I CAN SAY THAT.
>> OVERWHELMINGLY, THE ONES
THAT I SAW WERE HOSPITALIZED
ARE STILL THOSE UNVACCINATED
KIDS AND LARGELY FROM
UNVACCINATED FAMILIES. YOU
KNOW, I HAVEN’T YOU KNOW, WE
DON’T SEE THE ONES WHO ARE
VACCINATED GETTING HOSPITALIZED
NEARLY AS OFTEN.
>> IS THIS A IS THIS SOMETHING
THAT WE’RE JUST GOING TO BE
LIVING WITH FROM NOW ON?
IT WILL BE LIKE THE
FLU VACCINE. YOU KNOW, WE JUST
GET IT EVERY YEAR AND HOPE IT’S
GOT THE LATEST
>> SUBVARIANTS A VARIANCE OF
THE FLU THAT
WE’VE SEEN.
>> YEAH, I THINK THAT’S LIKELY
WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN. YOU
KNOW, WE HAVE LOTS OF
CORONAVIRUSES AND AND WE YOU
KNOW, WE’VE BEEN EXPOSED TO
THEM OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND
OVER AGAIN OVER THE YEARS THAT
THEY’RE KIND OF COMMON COLDS
FOR US. AND SO I THINK THAT AS
WE YOU KNOW, WITH WITH WITH
VARIANCE, WITH VARIANT BOOSTER,
IS BUILD THOSE THINGS THAT WE
KIND OF BUILD UP, YOU KNOW,
SORT OF A COMPLEX SET OF
FLAVORS OF OUR IMMUNITY THAT
HOPEFULLY LOOK SOME CROSS
PROTECTION FOR FUTURE VARIANTS.
BUT I SUSPECT THAT THE WAY THAT
THIS VIRUS, THE HAZE, WE DO
HAVE MORE VARIANTS TO COME.
AND AND I THINK THAT WILL HAVE
TO TRY TO DO OUR BEST TO, YOU
KNOW, ATTACK THOSE AND PREVENT
THEM AS THEY COME ALONG.
>> DOCTOR TESS BARTON WITH UT
HEALTH, SAN ANTONIO, ALWAYS