Considering the rise in COVID-19 cases in the country, it is natural for parents to be worried about their young kids. As Singapore fully vaccinates 80 percent of its population, over half of a million kids under 12 years old still remain ineligible for the jabs.
Health Minister Ong Ye Kung last week confirmed that booster shots will be given to seniors and those who are immunocompromised. He mentioned that vaccines for children under 12 are expected to start in early 2021 after trials are completed and the required approvals are met.
If you are wondering why the approval for vaccine for kids is taking longer, here’s what we know so far.
Approval For Vaccine For Children Under 12 Years Expected Soon, Here’s What We Know So Far
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Pfizer
The first approval for vaccine for children will be from Pfizer-BioNTech. Their trials are expected to be completed first, as per reports.
The data comprising of 2,250 children between the ages of five and 11 years in its clinical trial is expected to come by the end of September 2021. Then, emergency use authorisation will be sought from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October.
Even though the vaccine maker has enrolled another 2,250 children in its ongoing paediatric COVID-19 vaccine studies, it will not delay the data from the initial group.
In response to CNA queries, Pfizer said that the full dataset is expected by the end of this year.
Moderna
The US firm had informed media in August that it expected to have enough data by the end of this year. This will be enough to seek authorisation for its vaccine for children between the age of six and 11 years old.
At present, the Moderna vaccine is only authorised for use in adults who are 18 years and above. The company had filed for emergency use authorisation for teenagers aged 12 to 17 from the FDA in June.
It had officially announced that its vaccine is 100% effective in protecting children in this age group against coronavirus.
Sinovac
The results of an early phase trial of the Sinovac vaccine in children and youth between the age of three to 17 has been published.
What’s next?
If everything happens as planned, then US FDA is expected to grant emergency use authorisation to Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children under 12 before the end of 2021.
Following this, Health Sciences Authority (HSA) in Singapore can then consider granting approval for its use in the country.
The US authorised the emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for individuals 16 and above on December 11, 2020. HSA then granted the interim authorisation in Singapore a few days later on December 14.
Then in May this year, the US expanded the authorisation to include teens from 12 to 15-years-old. After eight days, HSA approved it for a similar age group in the country.
Vaccine For Children Vs Adults
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The vaccine doses for children will be small smaller. Dale Fisher, senior consultant at NUH explained the dose for children between the age of five to 11 is a third of the adult dose.
For those younger than five, the dose will be just one-tenth of the adult dose. Note, this will be based on the safety and efficacy findings in early phase trials in this age group.
The dosages of 10mg to 30mg are being tested on different age groups for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. At, present the trials extend to kids children who are as young as six months old.
The trial data of children who are under five are expected after the trials for five to 11-year-olds are submitted.
Note, Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines which are the two approved vaccines in the country require two doses.
Should You Vaccinate Your Kids?
Medical experts have expressed their concern that vaccinating children is necessary for the country to achieve herd immunity.
Professor Fisher said that infection in children is mostly less severe, but the risk becomes higher if they are suffering from some underlying medical condition. In addition to this, their contribution to the amount of circulating virus is still not clear.
Researchers will get more clarity on the same once they have the trial data in their hands.
Associate Professor Hsu recommends it will be best if vaccines for children can get included in the National Childhood Immunisation Schedule after HSA approves it. “If found safe, children should get their jab,” he concludes.
While the approval for vaccine for kids below 12 can take some more time, it is important to continue to follow the safety guidelines always. Even after your kids get their jabs, make sure, they wear their mask, wash their hands and avoid crowded places.
Source: CNA
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