What is the difference between the third dose and the COVID booster?
A booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine may be available this fall, depending on the available data and the judgment of government officials. On the other hand, people with weakened immune systems can already get the third dose. So, what is the difference?
The difference in medical terms is that a booster immunization occurs sometime after you are vaccinated and develop immunity, usually a year or more. The idea of a booster is to "enhance" your immunity when it starts to fade.
On the other hand, the vaccine may first be administered in a series of doses. The two doses of COVID vaccine (Pfizer and Moderna) are not the only vaccine in a series. The same is true for many childhood vaccines: According to the CDC's vaccine program, the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine requires two doses, rotavirus requires two or three doses, polio requires three doses, and more.
The difference in medical terms is that a booster immunization occurs sometime after you are vaccinated and develop immunity, usually a year or more. The idea of a booster is to "enhance" your immunity when it starts to fade.
On the other hand, the vaccine may first be administered in a series of doses. The two doses of COVID vaccine (Pfizer and Moderna) are not the only vaccine in a series. The same is true for many childhood vaccines: According to the CDC's vaccine program, the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine requires two doses, rotavirus requires two or three doses, polio requires three doses, and more.
Infants’ immune systems are developing, so they usually require more doses than older children or adults. Children who get the flu vaccine for the first time should get two doses, and those who have been vaccinated before or who are older than 8 years old when they get the flu vaccine for the first time can get one dose.
Once your body has a chance to build immunity to the vaccine, the primary series is considered to be over. If you need another dose of the same vaccine later, it is a booster. For example, you should get the tetanus (or Tdap) vaccine every 10 years. People who have been vaccinated against meningitis, if they belong to a high-risk group, may need a booster injection every few years.
Injecting an additional COVID vaccine for people with weakened immune systems is considered the third dose of the primary vaccine series, because two doses are not always sufficient to provide protection. After getting the first two doses three or four weeks apart (depending on whether it’s Pfizer or Moderna),
the third dose is given four weeks after the second.
Once your body has a chance to build immunity to the vaccine, the primary series is considered to be over. If you need another dose of the same vaccine later, it is a booster. For example, you should get the tetanus (or Tdap) vaccine every 10 years. People who have been vaccinated against meningitis, if they belong to a high-risk group, may need a booster injection every few years.
Injecting an additional COVID vaccine for people with weakened immune systems is considered the third dose of the primary vaccine series, because two doses are not always sufficient to provide protection. After getting the first two doses three or four weeks apart (depending on whether it’s Pfizer or Moderna),
the third dose is given four weeks after the second.
On the other hand, whether the initial series is two or three doses, it is possible to provide a booster six months or one year after the initial vaccination. (Until recently, the intensified discussion mainly focused on mRNA vaccines, but a booster vaccine for the one-time Johnson & Johnson vaccine may also be about to appear.) The idea is that the initial series of vaccines gave you good protection, and as the protection weakened, your immunity The system may need to be enhanced.