1. Option for tele-medicine for all appropriate visits: doxy.me/drscala.  This can be used on your cell phone or computer. You will need to call for an appointment, and we will schedule a time to talk to Dr. Scala on a video conference call. This is a HIPAA compliant secure medical video conference.  No information is recorded or stored on any computer server. Dr. Scala will manually enter the visit in the electronic medical record at the office.   Please note for the video call you will have to allow the program to access your microphone and camera.  

 

2. SARS-CoV-2 vaccination information:  There are currently 2 vaccines to prevent COVID-19 approved in the United States as of January 9, 2021.  The first is the Pfizer (manufactured in Kalamazoo, Michigan) mRNA vaccine, two doses of 0.3ml each given 21 days apart.  The second is the Moderna (manufactured in Norwood, Massachusetts) mRNA vaccine, 2 doses of 0.5ml given 28 days apart.  The process of immunizing Colorado can be found here: 

 https://covid19.colorado.gov/for-coloradans/vaccine/vaccine-for-coloradans

 

3. The idea of mRNA vaccine were first proposed in 1989 at the Salk Institute in San Diego (founded by Jonas Salk in 1960, inventor of Polio vaccine).  Messenger RNA (mRNA vaccines) have been in development since the early 1990's. Several mRNA vaccines have been developed and tested, including rabies, Zika, cytomegalovirus and influenza, however those vaccines have not yet been licensed. 

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4. A small piece of the Sars-CoV-2 viral RNA is encapsulated in a lipid nanoparticle.  In these vaccines, it is the isolated mRNA fragment that encodes the directions for manufacturing the spike protein (which is the part of the virus that attached to human cells for the infectious process).  After vaccination, the specialized cells in our bodies that surround and 'scoop up' foreign particles and proteins (antigen-presenting cells) absorb the lipid nanoparticles and process the mRNA. 

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5. The mRNA stays in the cell cytoplasm and does not enter the cell's nucleus (where our DNA resides).  There is NO modification of human DNA from this process. The antigen-presenting cell manufactures the spike protein, and presents it on the outside of the cell wall.  After the mRNA is decoded and translated, the cell destroys the mRNA fragment.

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6. Then the adaptive immune response starts its highly complex process of developing antibodies against the spike protein.  When your body is naturally exposed to COVID-19, your antibodies are then primed to immediately recognize and neutralize the threat. 

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7. Dr. Scala highly recommends that when your group is called, that you get the vaccine.  Although long-term safety data is not available, Dr. Scala believes it is a necessity for as many people as possible to receive the the vaccine.  From thousands of conversations in the office and on the phone, the social and human tragedy currently occurring from profound social isolation is devastating. The loss of routine and instruction in elementary school aged children, the loss of social development in adolescents, and the extreme isolation of seniors cannot continue.