Prepared January 2020
Information from the Mater Hospital Transplant Centre about COVID- 19 Vaccination
Is the vaccine safe for people waiting for transplant or people who have had a transplant?
The available vaccines have been approved as safe by the European Medicines Agency following review of all of the available information. For example the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have been tested in over 100,000 patients in clinical trials. Although transplant patients were not included in these studies we know a lot about vaccination following transplant and expert opinion is that the vaccine is safe for transplant recipients.
At the moment, there are two types of vaccine that we expect to be available in Ireland, mRNA vaccines and second type that contain a virus that cannot reproduce. Both of these types of vaccine are considered safe for transplant patients. It is not possible to contract COVID-19 or other viruses from these vaccines. In the future, it is possible that other types of vaccine may become available that are “live” and therefore unsuitable for patients who are taking immunosuppressants.
Am I likely to have side effects from the vaccine?
Some people who got the vaccine had tenderness, swelling and/or redness in the arm where they had the injection. You may feel tired, get a headache, have muscle pain, have joint pain, have nausea, get a fever. We don’t know if transplant patients are more or less likely to experience these side effects.
Can the vaccine cause rejection of a transplanted organ?
These vaccines have not been trialled in transplant patients however expert opinion from doctors working in transplant is that the vaccines are unlikely to lead to any issues with rejection. Transplant patients will be carefully monitored following vaccination to ensure this.
Is the vaccine effective for people who have had a transplant?
No vaccine is 100% effective. We do not yet know if having the vaccine stops you from spreading the virus to others. We know from our experience with other vaccines that people who are taking immunosuppressive medicines can have lower response to vaccines in general. We also do not know how long the protection from the vaccine lasts and if this is shorter for transplant patients.
This means that even after you have completed your vaccination course you will still need to take care to avoid coming in contact with the infection. So you will still have to follow the public health advice to reduce your chance of getting infected e.g. social distancing, hand washing and wearing a face covering. It is likely that repeat vaccination later this year or next year will be necessary for everyone.
Am I recommended to get the vaccine?
Yes, COVID-19 can be a very serious infection especially people who have underlying lung and heart problems. Although we are not certain yet how much protection the vaccine will give we recommend that you have the vaccine when you are offered it. This recommendation is in line with the guidance from the HSE and from the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation.
In certain cases we will recommend delaying vaccination, for example if you have received your transplant very recently or if you are having very intense immunosuppression.
We do not know if any type of vaccine will be more effective for transplant patients so we advise you to accept whichever type of vaccine you are offered (e.g. Pfizer, Moderna or Oxford vaccine). When you are offered the vaccine please contact clinic and we will advise you, we will also organise any follow up monitoring that you need after the vaccine
When and where will I get the vaccine?
Vaccine roll-out and prioritisation is being organised by the HSE and we do not have control over this.
Should my family get the vaccine as well?
We recommend that your family members and carers are vaccinated when they are offered the vaccine. This will reduce the possibility of you being exposed to the virus.
What if I’ve had COVID-19 already?
Even if you’ve had COVID-19 already, you are still recommended to get the vaccine. We do not know how long antibodies last after an infection and there have been several cases world wide of people being infected with the virus on more than one occasion. It seems that protection from the vaccine lasts longer than protection from getting the infection.
Should I inform clinic when I get the vaccine?
Please inform transplant clinic staff who will organise any follow-up that is necessary.
Where can I get more information?
There is excellent information available on the HSE website - www.hse.ie
Additional information is also available from the transplant clinic, your GP or pharmacist
To download a PDF copy of this information. provided by the Mater Hospital Transplant Centre click on the resource below.