Coronavirus vaccine effective on autoimmune disease patients, study finds

[iolaire]

Coronavirus vaccine effective on autoimmune disease patients, study finds
https://www.jpost.com/health-science/coronavirus-vaccine-effective-on-autoimmune-disease-patients-study-finds-667003
In the control group, 100% of vaccinated individuals developed antibodies, while among those who presented autoimmune diseases, the rate was about 85%.

[kristina]

Hello Iolaire, many thanks for this vital information, it is very much appreciated.
Kind regards and thanks again from Kristina.

[MooseMom]

How interesting that, once again, it is a particular drug that renders the vaccine practically useless.  Rituximab, meet mycophenolate!

[PrimeTimer]

Thanks for posting that link, iolaire. I found a link too on a Sarcoidosis facebook site about the vaccine and those with weakened immune systems. I am posting it.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/15/health/coronavirus-vaccine-immune-system.html




My Pulmonologist told me that I will need to be off Prednisone and Methotrexate at least 2 weeks before each dose of the Covid vaccination. The idea is to intentionally allow my immune system to become active in order to react to the vaccine and produce antibodies. Not ready nor looking forward to being off the meds but at some point I want the vaccine. Even if efficacy isn't 100%. Something is better than nothing and could be the difference between living or dying in an ICU somewhere from Covid or spreading it.   

[iolaire]

This story talks about transplant folks and also general immunocompromised people, it continues to promote the idea that immunocompromised might not have antibodies but might have T-Cell responses - but there is not yet data on that.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/05/18/immunocompromised-coronavirus-vaccines-response/

There are some scary quotes that are more negative for immunocompromised including this one:
Kim, an assistant professor in the division of rheumatology, said one perplexing finding is that steroid use also appeared to diminish the vaccine response. Although he cautioned that only a small number of patients were involved, he said prednisone, which is used to treat such conditions as arthritis in adults and breathing difficulties in children, appeared to result in a tenfold reduction in antibody production, regardless of the dose given if administered around the time of the vaccine.

This is a common refrain in these articles, don't get tested for antibodies but continue to take precautions like you are protected.  In light of that I will say the transplant webinar last week said that transplant folks who have antibodies should not assume they are immune to COVID and should take precautions.
One thing doctors don’t recommend is for vaccinated people to get antibody tests. First of all, no one knows what levels of antibodies are effective against the virus. Moreover, Kim emphasized that antibodies are only one part of the immune system and that it’s possible that the vaccines have activated other, more difficult-to-measure components.

“It’s not something that we can act on,” he said of such information. “All it can do is mount worries for the patient.”

Many physicians urge immunocompromised patients to continue to practice social distancing and take other precautions.

One positive for the dialysis community is I've not see much worry in this context for people who are on dialysis, its rather the other medical issues that sometimes leads to dialysis.