In Canada, four vaccines have been approved for use by Health Canada as of March 11, 2021.
Further below on this page is a brief explanation of each of them.
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommends that all Canadian adults who are able to, receive a COVID-19 vaccination to protect themselves and others.
If you have osteoarthritis
You are encouraged to get the vaccine when it is available to you.
If you have a rheumatic disease
People with rheumatic diseases have mostly been excluded from vaccine trials. We don’t yet know about the side effects or how well COVID-19 vaccines work in people with autoimmune rheumatic diseases.
Because of this, NACI recommends that people who are immunosuppressed because of disease or medications they are taking be offered the vaccine if a risk assessment deems that the benefits outweigh the potential risks for the individual. For more information, visit NACI’s website (under “Vaccines” and “Recommendations”.)
We do know that other vaccines, e.g. flu vaccines, provide adequate protection for most people with autoimmune conditions, with side effects similar to the general population. Other vaccines don’t usually trigger flares of autoimmune conditions. We’ll learn more as more people receive the COVID-19 vaccines. Much like the flu vaccine, you should speak with your healthcare provider to discuss the risk and benefits of your specific situation.
The Canadian Rheumatology Association has created a decision aid [PDF] for people with autoimmune rheumatic disease who are over 18 to use in their discussions with their health-care provider.
Note: Decisions about the distribution of the vaccines and prioritization of specific populations are made by individual provinces or territories. For information about when you might receive the vaccine or information specific to where you live, please refer to your provincial or territorial health ministry website.
The different vaccines
Pfizer
- Was approved for use in Canada in December 2020 for individuals 16 and older.
- Has been first administered to high-risk populations (front-line health care works, long-term care residents, seniors 80+).
- Is a two-dose vaccine with the manufacturer recommending the second dose be administered 21 days later.
- In order to vaccinate as many adults as quickly as possible, NACI recently recommended the interval between doses be extended to four months.
- In clinical trials, it had a reported efficacy of 95 per cent.
Moderna
- Was approved for use in Canada in December 2020 for individuals 18 and older.
- Has been first administered to high-risk populations (front-line health care works, long-term care residents, seniors 80+).
- Is a two-dose vaccine with the manufacturer recommending the second dose be administered 28 days later.
- In order to vaccinate as many adults as quickly as possible, NACI recently recommended the interval between doses be extended to four months.
- In clinical trials, it had a reported efficacy of 94 per cent.
Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are based on mRNA technology that work by giving your cells instructions on how to make a piece of the virus called a protein. Your immune system learns to recognize the protein. If you become infected with the virus, your body gets rid of the infection, so you don’t become sick. These vaccines do not contain the live virus that causes COVID-19.
AstraZenca
- Was approved for use in Canada at the end of February 2021.
- It's recommended for adults 55 and older.
- Is a two-dose vaccine with the manufacturer recommending the second dose be administered 28 days later.
- In order to vaccinate as many adults as quickly as possible, NACI recently recommended the interval between doses be extended to four months.
- In clinical trials, it had a reported efficacy of 63-82 per cent (efficacy varied depending on the timing of the second dose).
- It’s made from a weakened version of a common cold virus (known as an adenovirus). It has been modified to look more like coronavirus – although it doesn’t cause illness. Once injected, it teaches the body's immune system how to fight the real virus, should it need to.
Johnson & Johnson
- Was approved for use in Canada at the beginning of March 2021 for individuals 18 and older.
- Unlike the other vaccines approved for use in Canada, it is a one-dose vaccine.
- In clinical trials, it had a reported efficacy of 66-85 per cent.
- It is an adenovirus vector vaccine that uses a harmless cold virus to deliver a gene that carries the blueprint for the spiky protein found on the surface of the coronavirus. The virus enters cells, which then follow the genetic instructions to construct a replica of the coronavirus spike. The immune system uses these replicas to recognize — and respond to — the real thing if a person were to become infected.
Additional vaccines from other pharmaceutical companies are still being tested. In fact, there are 150 different vaccines at different stages of development around the world.
The benefits of the COVID-19 vaccine are:
- Prevention: while the efficacy of each vaccine differs, they are all safe and effective at preventing COVID-19 in people who get vaccinated. (For comparison, the efficacy of the flu vaccine is between 40-60 per cent each year).
- Reduction: COVID-19 is less severe in people who get the vaccine but who still get sick.
- Protection: getting vaccinated helps protect people around you.
There are some possible temporary side effects or risks of the COVID-19 vaccine, including:
- Sore arm at injection site
- Tiredness
- Fever, chills
- Headache
- Temporarily swollen lymph nodes
- General muscle or joint pain