Coronavirus vaccines will be made available to more children in the United States, as regulators on Monday extended the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech outbreak to those up to 12 years old, sparking a race to protect students before they return. in class later this year.
Shooting could begin as soon as Thursday, after a federal vaccine advisory committee issued recommendations for using the two-dose vaccine in children ages 12 to 15. An announcement is expected on Wednesday.
Most COVID-19 vaccines worldwide have been licensed for adults. The Pfizer vaccine is used in several countries for teens up to the age of 16 and Canada recently became the first to expand its use to 12 years or older.
Parents, school administrators and public health officials in other countries have been eagerly awaiting approval to make the shot available to more children.
U.S. President Joe Biden issued a statement hailing the authorization as “a promising development in our fight against the virus.”
“If you’re a parent who wants to protect your child or a teenager interested in vaccinating you, today’s decision is one more step toward that goal,” he said.
Most children with COVID-19 show only mild symptoms or no symptoms. However, children are not at risk for serious illness and can still spread the virus. There have been outbreaks related to sporting events and other activities for children ages 12-15.
Dr. William Gruber, a top-notch vaccine scientist at Pfizer, said licensing the vaccine for young teens would help the U.S. expand its immune population and protect an unsaved age group. completely of serious diseases.
“I have news from pediatricians and people from the community, what a gift from God it will be for the teen population that has been restricted in terms of sports activities, theater club and other kinds of things that we naturally want them to participate in,” he said. Gruber.
“This is a turning point in our ability to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Vaccinate children of all ages it will be crucial to get back to normal.
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declared the The Pfizer vaccine is safe and offers strong protection for younger teens based on evidence from more than 2,000 volunteers between the ages of 12 and 15.
WATCH LIVE at 7:00 PM ET: Join the FDA Interim Commissioner @DrWoodcockFDA i @FDACBER Dr. Peter Marks director as they discuss Pfizer-BioNTech # COVID-19[FEMININE vacuna per a ús en adolescents de 12 a 15 anys. https://t.co/PDF95M3LX7
– FDA dels EUA (@US_FDA) 10 de maig de 2021
L’estudi no va trobar cap cas de COVID-19 en adolescents completament vacunats en comparació amb 18 en nens que van rebre tirs falsos. Més intrigants, els investigadors van trobar que els nens van desenvolupar nivells més elevats d’anticossos contra la lluita contra el virus que els estudis anteriors mesurats en adults joves.
Els adolescents més joves van rebre la mateixa dosi de vacuna que els adults i van tenir els mateixos efectes secundaris, sobretot braços adolorits i febre semblant a la grip, calfreds o dolors que indiquen un sistema immunitari revitalitzat, especialment després de la segona dosi.
Les proves de Pfizer en adolescents “complien els nostres estàndards rigorosos”, va dir el doctor Peter Marks, cap de vacunes de la FDA.
“Tenir una vacuna autoritzada per a una població més jove és un pas crític per continuar disminuint la immensa càrrega de salut pública causada per la pandèmia COVID-19”, va dir Marks.
Pfizer i el seu soci alemany BioNTech van sol·licitar recentment una autorització similar a la Unió Europea, a la qual seguiran altres països.
Les últimes notícies són benvingudes per a les famílies nord-americanes que lluiten per decidir quines activitats es poden reprendre amb seguretat quan els membres de la família més joves no es vacunin.
“I can’t feel totally comfortable because mine aren’t vaccinated,” said Carrie Vittitoe, a substitute teacher and freelance writer in Louisville, Kentucky, who is fully vaccinated, as is her husband and 17-year-old daughter.
The FDA’s decision means her 13-year-old son could soon be eligible, leaving only her 11-year-old son who would not be vaccinated.
Pfizer isn’t the only company looking to lower the age limit for the vaccine.
Moderna Inc. recently said that the preliminary results of a study in 12- to 17-year-olds show strong protection and have no serious side effects. Another American company, Novavax, has a COVID-19 vaccine in late development and has just started a study in 12- to 17-year-olds.
The next step is to test if the vaccine works for even younger children. Both Pfizer and Modern have begun studies in the US in children aged six months to eleven years.
These studies explore whether infants, preschoolers, and primary school children will need different doses than adolescents and adults. Pfizer expects its first results sometime after September.
Outside the US, AstraZeneca is studying its vaccine among young people aged 6 to 17 in the UK. And in China, Sinovac recently announced that it has submitted preliminary data to Chinese regulators showing that its vaccine is safe in children up to three years old.
