Pfizer Vaccine Safe for Kids

The Pfizer vaccine showed a "favorable safety profile" in the company's trial of children under 12. The firm used dosages that were one-third of what is normally given to people over the age of 12.

Children between the ages of 5 and 11 were given the COVID-19 vaccination, which Pfizer said was "safe" and "well-tolerated," with "strong neutralizing antibody responses."  The pharmaceutical company claimed that its study of the vaccine among children under the age of 12 had "favorable safety profiles."

For its research, the company used doses that were one-third of what is typically given to people aged 12 and above. Results were published in the journal Pediatrics.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said,  “Over the past nine months, hundreds of millions of people ages 12 and older from around the world have received our COVID-19 vaccine. We are eager to extend the protection afforded by the vaccine to this younger population, subject to regulatory authorization, especially as we track the spread of the Delta variant and the substantial threat it poses to children.”

In the United States, pediatric cases of COVID-19 have risen by nearly 240 percent since July, underscoring the critical role that vaccination plays in protecting public health."

It is our intention to submit these findings to the [Food and Drug Administration (FDA)] and other authorities as soon as possible," he said. "These trial findings provide a strong foundation for pursuing approval of our vaccine for children aged 5 to 11."

The Pfizer research included 2,268 participants ranging in age from 5 to 11 years old.

According to the company, the doses resulted in adverse effects comparable to those seen in the research for people between the ages of 16 and 25.

It also said that the study results would be submitted in a future submission to the FDA for emergency use authorization.

There are currently no COVID-19 vaccinations available for children under the age of 12, making a large number of children and those in close contact with them particularly vulnerable to the most recent spike in the virus caused by the delta variant.

Given their frequent contact with children who have not been immunized, National Institute of Health Director Francis Collins stated on Sunday that he believes parents and teachers should be placed in the same category as health care professionals when it comes to the risk of COVID-19 infection.

In August, a record-breaking nearly 2,000 pediatric hospitalizations in the United States were caused by COVID-19, setting a new high for the virus.

Children are thought to be less susceptible to severe coronavirus infections than adults, but new variations continue to pose a threat of causing more severe symptoms.

An FDA advisory panel decided last week to recommend a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for people over the age of 65 and in certain high-risk categories, which was announced just a few days before this announcement.

The panel decided against administering a third dose of vaccine to all vaccine-eligible individuals.

Following a COVID-19 vaccination, nearly 75% of the eligible population (those aged 12 and up) has received at least one dose of the vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Approximately 64 percent of people over the age of 12 have received all of their vaccinations.

                    Pfizer says its Covid vaccine is safe, effective in kids aged 5 to 11