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    Autoimmune-disease drugs may reduce vaccine response


    April 12 (Reuters) - The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus.
    Autoimmune disease treatments may reduce vaccine responses

    Immunosuppressive drugs for inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and ulcerative colitis can impair the body's response to the COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, according to new data. In 133 fully vaccinated people with such conditions, antibody levels and virus neutralization were about three-fold lower than in a comparison group of vaccinated individuals not taking those medicine, researchers reported on Friday on medRxiv ahead of peer review. Most patients in the study "were able to mount antibody responses in response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, which is reassuring," said coauthor Alfred Kim from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. It is not clear yet whether reduced antibody levels will result in decreased protection from infection or hospitalization, Kim said. Particularly concerning, he said, is the 10-fold reduction in vaccine-induced antibody levels seen in patients who routinely use steroids such as prednisone and methylprednisolone and a 36-fold reduction seen with drugs that deplete B cells, including Roche's Rituxan (rituximab) and Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). Reductions in antibody levels were more modest with widely used rheumatoid arthritis drugs in the class known as TNF inhibitors such as Abbvie's Humira (adalimumab) and Amgen's Enbrel (etanercept); antimetabolites like methotrexate and sulfasalazine; JAK inhibitors like Pfizer's Xeljanz (tofacitinib), gut-specific agents such as Takeda Pharmaceutical Co's Entyvio (vedolizumab), and IL-12/23 inhibitors including Johnson & Johnson's Stelara (ustekinumab). (bit.ly/2QmzRiY)
    Complete story here :
    https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL1N2M524W


    #2
    Thanks Marco. My neuro talked about this, specifically for b-cell depleting treatments - basically, full protection won't be obtained, but not sure what level it would be. There is just not enough data. He also said timing of obtaining the vaccine in relation to the treatment cycle is more important for these drugs - to try and maximize the vaccine effectiveness.
    Kathy
    DX 01/06, currently on Tysabri

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      #3
      I have gone a year prior to dose #1 and waiting 4 weeks after dose #2 to get my infusion. That's about as good as it gets...

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        #4
        I just donated what felt like a bucket full of blood for a study on this. My understanding is two of the newer MS meds, can't remember which two, have been shown to result in a reduced efficacy for the regular flu vaccine and they are trying to determine if that is the case with covid vaccine also.
        He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.
        Anonymous

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