Is it safe to get the Corona Virus (COVID-19) vaccine with PMR?

@pfafpa I had the first dose of Pfizer for Covid today and my reaction within 45 minutes was, my arm hurt, I had a bit of aching in my neck/jaw junction on the same side of the injection, headache, feeling queasy and tired, and then base of my tongue started to hurt on one side (opposite side from the injection). That was a concern because of the possibility of anaphylactic reaction where the tongue and throat swell closed cutting off breathing in a severe allergic reaction. Out of caution, they sent me to the ER and they did an IV with some antihistamines (including Benadryl) and steroids. The pain in my tongue stopped within 20 minutes. If that would have become a severe reaction, this was an early stage, and it is much better to treat early because it can turn into a serious problem in an instant.. The ER doc said usually that type of reaction happens immediately. She also said I would not need epinephrine. The treatment made me tired, but I felt much better by 9 PM which was about 5 hours after the vaccination. I am still tired an headachy.

As I posted earlier, if you are at 20 mg or less of Prednisone per day, you should be safe in taking the vaccine. And the two vaccines currently approved from Pfizer and Moderna are MRNA vaccines that do not contain live or dead virus. Instead they have a “messenger” inserted to alert our immune system to respond to virus. It should pose no additional risk to someone on Prednisone. I just got my first shot of the Pfizer vaccine and have had zero side effects. I’ve been on Prednisone over two years, weaning down from 40 mg to 8 currently (with two flares causing me to bounce back up). My feeling is that getting COVID is a far bigger risk than mixing the shot and steroids, so I took the vaccine as soon as I could.

@sparker1 Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect, a place to give and get support.

You said that you had huge problems with the flu and shingles shot, would you elaborate?

My best wishes for your mum’s health. Has she taken the vaccine? I am in the same dilemma. Had severe PMR following a flu shot 6 years ago but took the natural path of agony. Have not had a relapse. Now I am debating on the vaccine

i took the covid19 moderna vaccine with nausea being the only side effect..this actually lasted for 48 hours..as a physician however i felt the benefits outweighed the risks..if one gets covid on top of PMR[an autoimmune disease]the subsequent events could be catastrophic ..my opinion not based on any data

I developed PMR after the flu shot Oct 2020
I’m trying to get off prednisone I’m down to 7.5
And feverishly looking for a natural alternative . Any suggestions

Hello @mgrace, Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I've had 2 occurrences of PMR but it's currently in remission and I got the first Pfizer COVID vaccine shot. Only had a sore arm for the first night but no other symptoms so far. I'm planning to get the second one Feb 26th. I am in the high risk category at 77 with other autoimmune conditions and figure it is well worth getting the vaccine.

Are you able to share a little more about why you are debating on getting the vaccine?

@kristem2020 I'm not sure if it's an alternative to prednisone but it may help you taper off.

Diet and Supplements for Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR): https://www.arthritis-health.com/blog/diet-and-supplements-polymyalgia-rheumatica-pmr

@mgrace- I gave not having a vaccine one second of thought after I had my shingles shot reaction with very bad PMR reactions. But what other alternative is there if you can have the vaccine? I have decided not to have the second shingles shot because I want the vaccine. There are pain pills and other meds that can get me through shingles. But I don't want to test COVID-19.

Will you reconsider the vaccine?

@munchie- Hello. Do you think that an antinausea med would have interfered with the vaccine?