Second does after 5 weeks

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I've just had an invite to go for my second jab on Sunday - I only had my first jab 5 weeks ago.

Seems a bit soon after the first.

Has anyone else had them so close together?

I’m in the US and we had them three weeks apart
( Modena). I did feel a bit rough after the second one, but DH was fine. I’d go ahead and take it.

I think that for Pfizer the manufacturer's recommendation is for a 3 week gap. The reason we had longer in the UK was because the government wanted to prioritise more first doses. If it's AZ, I believe it's more effective if you have a gap of at least 8 weeks. There's currently another thread on the subject. That needs to be weighed against the risk of catching Covid while waiting for your second dose.

I’ve got my second tomorrow just 4 weeks after my first. I questioned it here too but had my mind put at ease that’s it’s fine for Pfizer

Thank you very much - that was a lot quicker than expected.

Mine is the Pfizer too, so I have booked for the second dose 🙂

Unless it's AZ, that's standard most places. I'm in Ireland and it's 4 weeks for moderna and 3 weeks for pfizer, although many who got pfizer didn't get the second shot until 4 weeks.

They've pulled back AZ to 8 weeks here. With AZ you need a longer gap. I think 8 weeks is the minimum but I'm not sure.

This is normal for Pfizer

I believe normal spacing is 3 weeks for Pfizer and 4 weeks for Moderna. All 6 of us in my house have had either one or the other.

Yes just had second pfizer today. First dose was 5 weeks ago tomorrow.

May I know which area is doing Pfizer second dose sooner than 8 weeks. I can only book at 8 weeks.. where as some friends got invite in 4 weeks ( same council, different areas)

I'm in NZ and we are all getting Pfizer, with a three week gap.

My second Moderna jab is booked for 11 weeks after the first - that is how the NHS website spaces them for me.

Is that incorrect and I should have the second dose sooner?

All of the vaccines are expected to be better with the 12 week gap.

This study found a 3.5 times higher level of antibodies in people who had Pfizer with a 12 week gap versus a three week gap.

www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/latest/2021/05/covid-pfizer-vaccination-interval-antibody-response.aspx

You need to weigh up your personal risk of getting covid in the next couple of months - if cases are high or rising rapidly in your area or you're a high contact individual then get it now, if you WFH and don't see anyone then you're probably best off waiting.

@QueenStromba - All of the vaccines are expected to be better with the 12 week gap

This study found a 3.5 times higher level of antibodies in people who had Pfizer with a 12 week gap versus a three week gap.

That study only looks at over 80's. Older people have a much lower response to the vaccination than younger people so the study can't be extrapolated to younger people. It may be the case that a longer delay is beneficial for older people but not younger.

Additionally, the level of antibodies was measured 2 to 3 weeks after the second dose was given. So for one group, 5-7 weeks after the first dose and for the other group, 14-15 weeks after the first dose. Based on the link you gave, they don't appear to have controlled for the possibility of antibodies continuing to increase as time goes on. I would have expected the group who got their second dose after 3 weeks to be tested again 14-15 weeks after the first dose in order to compare like with like.

Finally, numbers in the study were very small. There were 89 with the second dose after 3 weeks and 68 with the second dose after 12 weeks (they excluded those who had got covid).

Certainly, the results of the study are interesting and are worth following up but I would definitely not use that study as a reason for a younger person to delay the second dose.