The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized a new COVID-19 vaccine booster that protects against both the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 and the omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants of the virus.
 
The new vaccine is a “bivalent” vaccine, or one that stimulates the immune response to a pair of antigens rather than a single antigen, as the original “monovalent” vaccine did.
 

This month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized a three-dose series of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and a two-dose series of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for children six months through four years of age. This follows earlier authorizations for children ages five and up.

While coronavirus continues to dominate the headlines, some of Carilion Clinic’s recent media mentions looked to the future and recognized past actions. We've listed just a few highlights below. 

When scheduling your first or annual mammogram, you might want to check the date of your most recent COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot.

Experts are recommending a 6-week window between the two because the vaccine can cause the lymph nodes in the armpit to swell as your body mounts an immune response to the coronavirus.