received Pfizer’s and Moderna’s new bivalent shots that target the dominant omicron BA.5 subvariant and the original strain of COVID.
Novavax’s newly authorized booster, on the other hand, is a monovalent shot and was developed against the original strain of COVID. However, the company believes its protein technology provides durable protection across different variants of the virus.
In fact, Novavax said its booster doses triggered robust antibodies against omicron BA.1, BA.2 and the dominant BA.5 subvariant in studies that observed adults who received the third shot 8 to 11 months after receiving their Novavax primary series.
The booster dose also induced an immune response in participants who received Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson as their primary series, according to the company.
The company believes that its vaccine can continue to provide durable protection even as the virus continues to evolve.
“We think we have a product that has a broad immune response, so we’re not going to be chasing the virus each time a new a new variant crops up. That needs to be proven but that’s our hypothesis,” according to Dr. Filip Dubovsky, Novavax’s chief medical officer.
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What side effects can you expect?
The most common side effects of Novavax’s vaccine are pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, nausea and vomiting, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The FDA has also warned that Novavax’s primary series appears to carry a risk of heart inflammation called myocarditis. Pfizer’s and Moderna’s shots also carry an elevated risk of myocarditis primarily in young men and adolescent boys after the second dose.
Public health officials are encouraging people to get their boosters. About 68% of U.S. residents have had an initial COVID vaccine series, but only 33.5% have received boosters, CDC data shows. Novavax’s vaccine is one of four options available in the United States now.
For more on COVID-19 vaccines, visit the CDC.