April 28, 2023 Columns by Ed Tobias If you have MS, is it time to get another COVID-19 booster? Those with multiple sclerosis (MS) may want to roll up their sleeves again for a COVID-19 vaccine. I’m thinking about whether to join them. About 10 days ago, an advisory committee of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) supported a recommendation that people 65…
January 31, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: COVID-19 Booster, EBV Treatment, Childhood MS Risks, Vitamin D COVID-19 Booster May Benefit Patients on Anti-CD20 Therapy After multiple reports of how Gilenya and anti-CD20 MS medications reduce the efficacy of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, here’s more evidence that a booster shot may improve that protection. The researchers report “modestly increased levels” of antiāSARS-CoV-2 antibodies after a third…
January 27, 2022 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD COVID Booster May Benefit Patients on Anti-CD20 Therapy Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with weak immune responses to COVID-19 vaccines are more likely to respond successfully to the booster shot if they are receiving an anti-CD20 therapy compared with those on Gilenya (fingolimod), according to a small study in Norway. These early findings suggest that booster shots…
November 23, 2021 News by Yedida Y Bogachkov PhD Autoimmune Patients Want Clearer COVID-19 Vaccine Info Patients with autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS), are uncertain about how to protect themselves against COVID-19, especially with regards to booster shots of the vaccine. According to a national survey by the nonprofit Alliance for Patient Access, these patients are confused due to conflicting information from the…
November 5, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias I’m Grateful for My COVID-19 Booster Shot I’m hurtin’ a little today. I have mild muscle aches, a bit more fatigue than usual, and dragging legs. It could just be a bad MS day, or it could be the result of my COVID-19 booster shot a couple days ago.Ā I received a third shot of the Moderna…
October 29, 2021 Columns by John Connor I’m Back in the Desert Without a Horse Well, that was fun. I’ve got my party hat on from a recent birthday (of course I have one, itās my trusty trilby! See my avatar above) and have been out and about having a lot of fun. I splurged by spending time with family and friends, ’cause…
September 20, 2021 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD MS Patients in UK Now Offered COVID-19 Booster Shots The U.K.ās National Health Service (NHS) has started its COVID-19 vaccine booster program, offering a third shot ā preferably with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine ā to at-risk populations, including people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The decision follows a recommendation by the countryās Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization, or…
August 20, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias Do People With MS Need a 3rd Vaccine Shot? Now that a third COVID-19 vaccine shot has been approved in the U.S. for immunocompromised people, and vaccine boosters are expected to be available to the general publicĀ sometime after Sept. 20, Walgreens and CVS have lost no time in offering the additional shot to those who qualify.