TAMPA, Fla. — On 10 Tampa Bay, we’re committed to keeping you up to date with all the latest COVID-19 news.
That’s why every week we are taking your questions to a local medical expert to talk about what’s going on. From the latest on where Tampa Bay stands with vaccines, to monitoring the COVID-19 variants, we’ll continue tracking information.
Dr. Michael Teng, Ph.D., is a virologist at USF Health.
Here are some of the questions we asked this week:
Q: We know vaccines can cause tenderness in the arm, but how long should we expect that soreness to last?
A: “I would say that if you have significant pain in your arm three days after you've gotten vaccinated, you should talk to your primary care physician.”
Q: Does anything make you more susceptible to symptoms following the COVID-19 vaccine?
A: “We don't really know, but in the clinical trials what was seen is that the older people, above 65, seemed to have fewer symptoms than younger people. So, I think it's really the younger people who have a really healthy immune system."
Q: Pfizer has determined its vaccine is effective for at least six months. Should we be planning to get a booster shot again, after that timeframe?
A: “The unfortunate thing is, people have fixated on the six months and that's just because their data runs out at six months because that's as much time as they've been able to have. So it's at least six months, it's most likely much more than that."
You can send your questions to 727-577-8522 and we might answer them on 10 Tampa Bay Brightside.