Freddy Caldera, DO, MS, associate professor, Gastroenterology and Hepatology, is one of the lead investigators in a new study that seeks to understand the effectiveness of the latest COVID-19 vaccinations for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which impacts roughly four million people in the United States.

The new study builds on findings from a previous study that investigated whether past versions of the vaccination prompted an appropriate immune response in IBD patients, despite the immunosuppressive medications needed to treat the disease.

“Our previous study shows patients with IBD are able to mount a good immune response to COVID-19 vaccine despite being on immunosuppressive therapies,” says Dr. Caldera. “With the rollout of updated COVID-19 vaccines, we now want to examine whether these monovalent vaccines provide sustained protection and a sustained T-cell response to protect patients from severe disease.”

Read the full story from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

Banner: Freddy Caldera, DO, MS, in the lab. Credit: Clint Thayer/Department of Medicine.