Trial shows it’s safe to get COVID and flu vaccines at the same time

Results of a randomized control trial published November 6th JAMA network opened show that participants who received mRNA COVID-19 and inactivated flu vaccines simultaneously had no more adverse effects than those who received the two injections consecutively, 1 or 2 weeks apart.

The study involved 335 people who were vaccinated between October 2021 and June 2023 at one of three U.S. study sites. All participants were 5 years and older and planned to receive both influenza and mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. The average age of participants was 33.4 years and 63% were female.

A total of 169 received the vaccines at the same time, while 166 received them consecutively.

The authors said the main outcomes of the study were reactogenicity, including fever, chills, myalgia and/or joint pain of moderate or greater severity within seven days of vaccination. Serious adverse events and adverse events of special interest were assessed for 121 days.

More than half of participants (57.0%) reported a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection or had detectable antibodies against the virus at the time of study entry.

Good safety data

The authors found that the proportion of study participants with the primary composite reactogenicity outcome in the concurrent group (25.6%) was non-inferior to the proportion in the sequential group (31.3%).

“Less than 13% of participants in both groups (simultaneously, 14 [8.3%]; consecutive, 21 [12.6%]) had a severe reaction to any of the requested responses, and no participant sought medical attention for any requested response,” the authors wrote.

Similarly, there was no difference between the two groups in the health-related quality of life indices.

“This trial supports the possibility of co-administration of these vaccines, which is a strategy to achieve high vaccination coverage during expected periods of increased transmission of influenza and SARS-CoV-2 virus,” the authors concluded.