The Medical Procedures You Can Have Before or After Your COVID-19 Vaccine

The pandemic may have made you put routine medical procedures and screenings on hold. Can you reschedule them, now that the COVID-19 vaccine is here? Yes, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). It’s still a good idea to consult your doctor about any questions or concerns you have about getting vaccinated. In the meantime, the CDC says that the following procedures are safe either before or after receiving the vaccine:

• Routine blood work
• Dental procedures
• CAT scans or computed tomography, with or without IV contrast dye
• EKGs (also known as ECGs or electrocardiograms)
• Cardiac stress tests (also known as exercise tolerance tests or treadmill tests), with or without radiographic dye
• Colonoscopies
• Ultrasounds
• Other medical screening exams

What about mammograms?

Ask your doctor how long you should wait after vaccination to get your mammogram. The COVID-19 vaccine can cause swelling in the lymph nodes under your arm, right near the vaccination spot. Although this swelling is a normal sign that your immune system is preparing to protect you against COVID-19, it could produce a false reading on your mammogram. For this reason, you might want to have your mammogram before you take the vaccine or wait four to six weeks afterward.

Is surgery, anesthesia, or hospitalization safe?

The safety of surgery, anesthesia or hospitalization depends on the patient and the procedure. To ensure that the benefits of vaccination outweigh any potential risks, ask your doctor whether you can safely take the COVID-19 vaccine beforehand, or if you should wait.

Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine appointments are available to our patients. Sign up for Connect today to schedule your vaccination. Review the latest on COVID-19 vaccines.