My Child’s MMR2 Vaccine Has Been Delayed Due to COVID-19. Should I Be Concerned?

Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | Children's Health, COVID-19, Health Hub, Your Health

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has postposed many important events, including your child’s immunizations. The MMR2—the second shot of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine—is particularly important for New York area parents who remember the past year’s measles outbreak. Stephen Turner, MD, Medical Director, Mount Sinai Doctors Brooklyn Heights, explains why parents need not worry if their child’s vaccination has been postponed.

Should I be concerned about delaying my child’s second MMR?

Fortunately, we do not have any measles circulating in the population at this time. So, it is a very reasonable option to delay the second MMR until a parent feels comfortable going to the physician’s office and getting the vaccine. The second dose, although most frequently given at age four, is recommended to be given between ages four to six according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention immunization schedule, which gives a lot of flexibility for your child to be fully vaccinated on time. 

Will delaying the second MMR put my child at any increased risk?

The second MMR is not a booster dose; it is to increase the immunity rate among the population. After one dose of MMR, approximately 92 percent of people are immune to measles. The second dose increases the immunity rate to 97 percent or higher. Therefore, a child who has received one MMR is very likely already immune.

How long can the vaccine be delayed?

There is no limit to how long the MMR2 vaccine can be delayed. In general, vaccines have a minimum spacing but not a maximum spacing. So, if a second dose of a vaccine is supposed to be two months later, for example, and you came back in two years, you pick up where you left off and get the second dose. Your child will not have to restart the vaccine series.

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What Should I Do if I Come in Contact with Someone who is Infected with the Novel Coronavirus or who has COVID-19?

Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | COVID-19, Health Hub, Your Health

For now, experts say you must assume that everyone you encounter in your daily life could be infected with the new coronavirus (COVID-19).

So the best general advice about protecting yourself in social situations is remain on guard and make sure you are thinking about this issue at all times: Treat every possible encounter with another person with care in order to avoid even the possibility of coming in contact with someone who may be infected.  Some who are infected may not show any symptoms.

That means following the rules of social distancing by staying at least six feet apart, and avoid touching your nose, eyes and mouth as much as possible, according to Waleed Javaid, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.

However, if the unexpected happens and you think you may have had contact with someone who is infected, you should immediately wash your hands and face with soap and water. If washing is not an option, then use hand sanitizer. Unless the person coughed or sneezed directly on you, the risk of transmission is very low. But it still makes sense to take all possible precautions.

Clothing itself has not been shown to transmit the virus, but there is the possibility that the virus contaminated your clothing and you then touched something on your clothes. If possible, you should consider changing your clothes.  There are no other scientifically proven remedies yet, according to Dr. Javaid.

It is important to note that wearing a face mask only may not prevent you from becoming infected. Someone who is infected and wearing a mask is doing their part to avoid infecting you and others. But you should still maintain proper social distancing anyway, even if you are wearing a mask. One added benefit of wearing a mask is that it can help remind you not to touch your face as often.

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Can I Get COVID-19 from Contact Lenses?

Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | COVID-19, Health Hub, Ophthalmology, Your Health

As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues, more is learned about how the virus affects the body. Recently, researchers in China noted that COVID-19 may be present in eye secretions, causing symptoms such as pink eye. For contact lens wearers, who frequently touch their eyes, this finding is cause for concern. Sumayya Ahmad, MD, Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, explains what contact lens wearers need to know about COVID-19.   

Can you contract COVID-19 when putting in your contact lens?

There is no evidence showing that using contact lenses can cause people to get infected with COVID-19. What we know is that the virus tends to live in the respiratory tract, and even people with active disease do not always have eye symptoms. The largest study to-date from Wuhan, China showed live virus in a swab of the conjunctiva in 2.5 percent (3 out of 121) of known, symptomatic COVID-19 patients, which is very low.

Are people who wear contact lenses at higher risk of contracting the virus?

People who wear contact lenses tend to touch their face more than people who wear glasses. We know that the risk of viral transmission is higher when touching your face, and that includes touching the eye. Although the membranes of the eye surface—the cornea and conjunctiva—are very strong, if there are viral particles on your hand and you touch your eye, you could become infected with the virus. However, for an isolated eye exposure to cause a full-blown respiratory tract infection remains to be seen, and would be a very difficult question to study.

Should people who wear contact lenses take any special precautions?

At this time, the American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends that if you do need to wear contacts, that you be particularly cautious about practicing good hygiene. This means you should wash your hands for 20 seconds before placing contacts, take them out each night—do not shower or sleep in them—and make sure your contacts case and solution are clean. You should also avoid touching your eyes while wearing them. If you are caring for someone with known COVID-19, it may be advisable to wear glasses because of the risk of transmission.

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