As the season changes, faculty at Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine are preparing for vaccine season. Part of that preparation includes guidance on vaccines, including the updated COVID vaccine, which is of particular importance as COVID cases are beginning to surge, along with vaccines for other respiratory diseases. When should you consider getting updated shots, which shots are necessary, and can you get the flu and COVID vaccines at the same time in the same arm?
“The colder days of late fall, winter, and early spring often correlate to higher circulation of respiratory illnesses like colds, the flu, and even COVID,” says Judith O’Donnell, the associate chief medical officer for Health Epidemiology at Penn Medicine and the chief of Infectious Diseases at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. “People often spend more time indoors and in close quarters, and winter’s cold and dry air also can increase some bugs’ survivability inside and outside the body.”
“Determining the right time to get a COVID vaccine depends on several things, including your medical history, age, the timing of your last COVID vaccine dose, and when you last had a COVID infection,” explain O’Donnell and Neil Fishman, chief medical officer of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. “People who have had COVID infection during the summer of 2024 or more recently should wait at least three months after their infection before getting the updated 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccination. People should also wait at least six months from their last COVID vaccine before getting the updated version. Additionally, people who are taking medications that suppress the immune system may need to coordinate vaccination with administration of other medications.”
Read more at Penn Medicine News.
