A combination shot would make it easier for people to get vaccinated against Covid and the flu at the same time.

A combination shot would make it easier for people to get vaccinated against Covid and the flu at the same time.

Moderna’s combined Covid and flu shot outperformed the existing standalone vaccines for both viruses, according to the results of a phase 3 clinical trial published Wednesday in theJournal of the American Medical Association.

The vaccine uses the same messenger RNA technology as Moderna’s approved Covid vaccine.(There are no approved mRNA-based flu shots.)

The trial, funded by Moderna, included more than 8,000 adults ages 50 and older who were enrolled in October and November 2023. For people ages 50 to 64, the new vaccine was compared to Moderna’s Covid vaccine and the flu shot Fluarix. For people 65 and older, it was compared to the Covid vaccine and a different flu shot, called Fluzone, which is a stronger dose typically given to older adults. The trial participants either got the existing shots, or the new combination vaccine plus a placebo shot. (This way, both groups got two injections.)

  • fireweed@lemmy.worldEnglish
    3·
    3 days ago

    Side effects such as fever and chills were more common in people who got the new vaccine.

    This caveat, glossed over in the article, is potentially a huge drawback.

    Personally, the covid and flu shots by themselves make me feel icky but moderately functional for 24-36 hrs, but the time I had both at once I was practically bedridden for three days.

    Obviously not everyone has this problem, but from what I’ve heard it’s common enough that I worry if the two-in-one shot becomes the new standard it will turn a lot of folks off from vaccination altogether. There’s enough vaccine hesitancy and skepticism out there already that a miserable reaction (or simply the need to clear your schedule for three whole days) could be enough to cause folks to indefinitely postpone their yearly booster or forgo vaccination altogether.

    • RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      2 days ago

      I find the Moderna vaccine in general (covid only) makes me feel worse than the Pfizer one. No idea why, but making it worse won’t prevent me from getting vaccinated, I’ll just get separate vaccines.

      As long as people have choices, and they know what they are, it shouldn’t be a big deal. The problem will arise when people don’t know/have a choice and feel like crap when given the combo vax.

    • Ledericas@lemm.eeEnglish
      3·
      2 days ago

      only the og first covid made me feverish,achey, plus the pain from the vaccine. that lessened over time as you get more shots.

      • Akuchimoya@startrek.websiteEnglish
        4·
        2 days ago

        Everyone reacts differently to different things. I know someone who’s side effects were worse each Covid shot he got. He still got them, because he was taking care of an elderly family member, but he had to started planning to be bedridden himself. He’s not antivax, but stopped getting boosters when the family member died because he didn’t want to be laid up for a week at a time.

    • 0101100101@programming.devEnglish
      1·
      3 days ago

      This caveat, glossed over in the article, is potentially a huge drawback. I’ve known people who have been floored after just one of the vaccines. Though I wonder if the body reacts differently to the combined than two singles.

      • Ledericas@lemm.eeEnglish
        2·
        2 days ago

        i mean the MMR-v and tdap have been in use for decades, which are vaccines of multiple viruses, antigens as one.

        covid just illicit a stronger immune reaction, because of how newly humans encountered the coronavirus.