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Dear Pandemic

9 Feb, 10 tweets, 6 min read

1/ Kevin from Texas asks: I just received the first Pfizer vaccination dose today & am scheduled to donate double red blood cells in one week. Should I reschedule? Will donating blood impact the success of the #vaccination?

@RedCross

2/ According to the @RedCross, if you received the Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, Novavax, or AstraZeneca vaccine & you're feeling well, you can donate blood--with no wait period. There is also no reason to expect that donating blood will impact your body’s response to the vaccine.

3/ It is safe for the donation recipient because getting these vaccines cannot cause #COVID19 infection-in fact, there is no SARS-CoV-2 virus in these vaccines at all!

Fun fact: this is the same reason that getting #vaccinated cannot cause a positive COVID-19 #infection test.

4/ You also do NOT need to defer #blooddonation after you get the vaccine for influenza, pneumonia, meningitis, HPV, tetanus, Tdap, or the SHINGRIX vaccine (that's the two-dose vaccine for shingles). All of these are non-replicating/inactivated virus vaccines.

5/ You DO need to defer your #blooddonation if you've recently received a live attenuated virus vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella, rubeola, chicken pox, Zostavax vaccine for shingles (single-dose), oral polio vaccine, hepatitis B, yellow fever, or a few other less common vaccines.

6/ In your pre-donation health screening, you’ll be asked about recent #vaccinations & the staff doing the screening will determine whether the vaccine you received indicates you should wait.

@RedCross

7/ The American @RedCross is testing all blood donations for #COVID19 #antibodies. This is a blood test indicating if your immune system has responded to #COVID either because you were vaccinated or infected.

@RedCross

8/ A person who has been #vaccinated for #COVID19 *might* show positive on the antibody test provided by the American @RedCross!

9/ But if it doesn’t, that’s OK. There are a couple of good reasons why the antibody test might be negative even if you’ve been #vaccinated & the #vaccine is protecting you.

10/ First, #antibodies don’t develop right away. Second, results would depend on the type of antibody test used. We couldn’t find any info on what type of test American Red Cross uses.

Thanks for donating blood! 🩸 ❤️

#ThoseNerdyGirls #dearpandemic

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More from @DearPandemic

Dear Pandemic

@DearPandemic

11 Feb

@CDCgov

1/ Q: What’s up with the new @CDCgov #mask study?

A: Good news, #doublemasking or tightening up ear loops works!

@CDCgov

2/ Remember the key features of effective masking: #FILTERING & #FIT.

The @CDCgov released a new experimental study testing ways to improve mask fit for cloth & medical masks to reduce leakage around the edges. cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/7…

3/ Using mannequin “headforms” & simulated #coughing they tested:

1️⃣ #Cloth #mask over a medical mask (double masking)
2️⃣ #Medical #mask with knotted ear loops & tucked in sides

Read 9 tweets

Dear Pandemic

@DearPandemic

21 Dec 20

1/ Q: Does someone who has been #vaccinated still need to wear a mask & take other precautions?

A: Yes. We don’t yet know whether the vaccines prevent someone from being infectious.
nytimes.com/.../health/cov…

@pfizer

2/ The existing #Covid_19 #vaccine trials focused on a specific endpoint – symptomatic COVID-19 disease. We know that both the @pfizer & @moderna_tx vaccines were close to 95% efficacious in preventing disease (YAY!!).

3/ But wouldn’t we expect the vaccine to also stop #transmission? Most experts think it’s highly likely that the vaccine will at least *reduce* infectiousness in vaccinated people who happen to encounter the infection, but we don’t know for sure or by how much.

Read 16 tweets

Dear Pandemic

@DearPandemic

19 Dec 20

1/ Is there any research/guidance regarding the #vaccines for those of us who already had it?

A: Those who have had #COVID19 are recommended to receive the vaccine.

2/ Data from the #Pfizer & #Moderna vaccine trials demonstrated safety in participants that have had #Covid_19 previously. Scientists are hopeful that the vaccine will offer a higher level of protection than immunity to natural infection.

3/ Although the Pfizer & Moderna #vaccine excluded participants with a known history of #COVID19, a number of participants on both trials were found to have baseline antibodies against SARS-CoV2- indicating a prior infection.

Read 9 tweets

Dear Pandemic

@DearPandemic

3 Dec 20

1/ Q: If I traveled over the holiday weekend, should I be taking any steps to protect others around me?

A: If you traveled/spent time in close contact with others outside your 🏠 over the holiday, it is safest to assume you were exposed.

2/ It is best to minimize contact with others for at least the next 7 days with a negative test and ideally for 2 weeks.
cdc.gov/coronavirus/20….

@CDCgov

3/ While no specific guidelines for what do to after Thanksgiving travel have been issued by @CDCgov, they do currently recommend that individuals who engaged in “high-risk” travel get tested 3-5 days after returning home AND stay home for 7 days, even if they test negative.

Read 9 tweets

Dear Pandemic

@DearPandemic

2 Dec 20

1/ Q: How is it possible that my friends are social distancing & yet have colds??

A: The interventions we use to reduce #COVID19 transmission--such as wearing masks, improving ventilation, & keeping physical distance from other people--don’t target the common #cold as well.

2/ Unlike the virus that causes #COVIDー19, which is transmitted through sharing air with infected people, most of the many viruses that cause the common cold--called rhinoviruses--love to hang around on surfaces.

3/ Especially in settings where a lot of children congregate, surfaces can become highly contaminated & dirty hands spread the common cold very effectively. All it takes is one dirty hand on one sandwich.

Read 7 tweets

Dear Pandemic

@DearPandemic

1 Dec 20

1/ Q: How is #COVID19 affecting international slum communities?

A: TL, DR. COVID-19 has disproportionately affected the lives & health of residents of slum communities, or informal settlements characterized by poverty, lack of basic services, crowding, unstable homes.

2/ Unfortunately, we don't have great data on what's happening in most of the informal settlements around the 🌎. One study found that nearly 57% of 7000 Mumbai slum residents tested + for antibodies in July, compared to only 17% in its non-slum regions. cnn.it/3qkEdEL

3/ This highlights the vast disparities in who is likely to contract #COVID in Mumbai. While some have interpreted high seroprevalence to indicate that these communities are approaching herd immunity, others have cautioned that this result may reflect a high # of false positives.

Read 6 tweets

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