New vaccinations against influenza and the virus that causes COVID-19 are available and arriving at physician offices and pharmacies. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign microbiology professor Chris Brooke is a virologist who studies respiratory viruses. He sat down with News Bureau biomedical sciences editor Liz Ahlberg Touchstone to discuss what’s in the new vaccines, the best time to get them and why we need them at all.
Why do we need yet another COVID-19 shot?
That’s a good question. This virus is evolving much faster than we ever expected it to. As new variants emerge that are distinct from those viruses that have circulated previously, which were covered by the previous vaccines, we have to update the vaccines to make them more effective.
It seems like COVID-19 shots are going to be a yearly thing, like flu shots. We see new variants emerging every few months, and unfortunately, they are evolving to look differently to our immune systems than those strains that have circulated previously. We have to update the vaccines to make sure they are protective against these new variants that are circulating. As long as we’re seeing the evolution of these new variants, we’re going to have to keep updating the COVID-19 shot.
What’s in this year’s flu shot? Does it protect against bird flu?
This year’s flu shot was developed like flu shots in the past. It carries three different strains of influenza virus that public health experts estimate will circulate later this year.
The bird flu strains are quite different from the seasonal influenza strains that we are used to seeing circulate in humans, so the standard flu shot is not really going to offer protection against bird flu. Researchers are absolutely working on bird flu vaccines. Bird flu has been a threat that’s been out there for 20-plus years. There are vaccines already developed that target the currently circulating H5 viruses, even the ones in cows that people are concerned about. So if this virus were to jump into people, we would be better positioned to roll out a vaccine to protect us against it than we were when the COVID-19 pandemic started. We already have these vaccines developed.
Who should get the new COVID-19 and flu shots?
Ideally, everyone would get their flu and COVID-19 shots every year. I’d say the biggest priority is going to be people who are most susceptible to severe infection: people who are elderly or immunocompromised for various reasons, or those who are especially exposed to individuals who may be sick — if you work in a healthcare setting or in a school, for instance. You don't need to have had the previous vaccinations to make this one work.
What’s the best time to get these vaccinations for maximum efficacy?
For flu shots, it’s best to get it about a month or two before flu season really kicks off. It’s a little bit different every year, but flu season usually starts picking up around November. So really, starting now, you’re good to get the shot.
You can get your flu shot and your COVID-19 shot at the same time. They put one in each arm and that’s usually how I do it.
Do the shots really work? Is it worth the side effects, when I might not even get either virus?
The main question I get is whether someone should get the vaccine. I think that is obviously a personal decision, but the vaccine absolutely decreases the severity and duration of infection.
Everyone is going to be exposed, particularly to COVID-19. If you haven’t been infected or vaccinated in the last six months, getting vaccinated will definitely help. It will almost certainly decrease the severity and duration of any of any COVID-19 infection that you get — and you are going to be exposed. It’s the same for influenza virus. While there are particularly side effects with the RNA-based COVID vaccines, generally speaking, from my experience, they they're much milder than the actual virus.