Outbreak of Covid-19 Coronavirus Delta: Patients with Chronic Disease Confusion with Mixed Messages on Vaccines

Patients clinically advised to wait for the Novavax Covid vaccine due to severe medical conditions are confused by a Ministry of Health message.

They want a guarantee that Novavax will take precedence as soon as it’s certified by MedSafe-even if it’s not until early next year.

However, despite the clinical advice that these patients were given, health officials continued to state that “there were no serious safety concerns from receiving the Pfizer vaccine.”

One expert Herald spoke of also said there was no reason for these patients to wait.

Wellington’s father, Phil Jones, was infected with rotavirus by his son at the age of 32. My son brought the insects home from day care.

Rotavirus is a highly infectious virus in the intestines that can be especially severe for adults.

The infection caused Jones to be hospitalized for a week and a half, resulting in three heart attacks.

He said he was 44 years old and was more vulnerable to further attacks if he was infected with any virus because of a heart injury, and doctors said he would “wait for other vaccine options.”

“I want to get vaccinated, but I’m confident I’ll miss a chance at Pfizer for the time being because I’m more likely to get attacked and return to the hospital,” Jones said.

“I feel like I’m playing with fire.”

He is not the only one in this situation.

A 57-year-old Auckland woman who asked not to be named for fear of being a target of anti-vax, she has a serious undiagnosed immune disorder and should wait for the Novavax vaccine from a rheumatologist. Said that he was “strongly advised”.

“He told me that because of my condition, it could cause a severe inflammatory response to the Pfizer vaccine and cause unknown harm to connective tissue,” she said.

To sign up for those who said she was “clinically advised to take Novavax for her own physical safety” for her and everyone else in her situation. I wish I had registered.

“I feel like there is no guarantee so far, so I just want a guarantee that everyone advised to wait for Novavax can be fully vaccinated with Novavax,” she said. ..

Another woman, a nurse, who was not practicing at the time of the outbreak of Delta, was suffering from mastocytosis. This is a rare genetic condition caused by an excessive number of mast cells gathering in the tissues of the body.

Her illness meant she was sensitive to all sorts of reactions from food, drugs and other chemicals.

It has made her sick for the past seven years.

“My immunologist says he will be vaccinated in the hospital because he can deal with anaphylaxis.
Although better than Covid, overseas, there were quite a few patients with mastocytosis who responded to the mRNA vaccine, and Novavax seemed to be safer. “

She said that if she relapsed, it would mean she had been ill for months.

“I’ve only been stable in the last 12 months … I’m scared of the idea of ​​doing something that could bring me back there.”

However, a health ministry spokesman said there were “no serious safety concerns” due to the identification of the Pfizer vaccine in New Zealand for patients with a high likelihood of immunodeficiency.

“People with immunodeficiency are at increased risk of developing serious infections when exposed to Covid-19, and two doses of Pfizer vaccine is a safe and effective way to mitigate this risk. is.”

Clinicians are always the best to advise patients, so people with severe immunodeficiency need to discuss the timing of vaccination with their doctor or specialist, he said.

Novavax submitted an application for the Covid-19 vaccine for use in New Zealand to Medsafe, but needed more data before making a decision.

A spokesman said that once the delivery schedule is confirmed, it will be considered for use in New Zealand, in accordance with Medsafe’s regulatory decisions regarding the safety and efficacy of the Novavax vaccine.

“The current delivery date for the Novavax vaccine is early 2022.”

Rheumatologist Andrew Harrison reiterated these comments, saying it was definitely not good to wait for Novabax.

“The Pfizer vaccine does not affect the control of disease activity and is safe for patients with rheumatic diseases,” Harrison said.

“It’s currently available and everyone needs to be vaccinated as soon as possible. There’s no reason to believe that the Novavax vaccine is a better option for people with autoimmune disease.”