Messenger-RNA vaccines given to young children aged 6 to 11 years are safe, effective and at par with the vaccines given to adults, according to an evaluation published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
“Two 50-μg doses of the mRNA-1273 vaccine were found to be safe and effective in inducing immune responses and preventing Covid-19 in children 6 to 11 years of age; these responses were noninferior to those in young adults,” the study published on May 26 said.
According to the authors of the study, vaccination of children to prevent Covid-19 is an urgent public health need. “The safety, immunogenicity and efficacy of the mRNA-1273 (code name for Moderna’s vaccine) vaccine in children 6 to 11 years of age are unknown,” the study claimed in the background.
The authors of the study said that “our trial showed the efficacy of mRNA-1273 vaccine when Delta was the predominant circulating variant and provided preliminary results indicating that in children mRNA-1273 vaccine elicits neutralising antibody responses that are similar to those observed against the Delta variant after booster vaccination in adults”.
These findings suggest that this vaccine provides a protective benefit for children against variants of concern, they said.
Although the highest risk of illness and death from Covid-19 occurs among older adults and populations with underlying coexisting conditions, children are at risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome infection that can lead to severe Covid-related outcomes, including hospitalisation, the use of life-supporting interventions, and death.
The burden of Covid-19 in children extends to social issues such as school interruptions and other life disruptions that may result in long-term consequences for academic development and wellbeing.
While the Indian vaccination drive against Covid-19 hasn’t used any mRNA or messenger-RNA based vaccine, the country is expected to soon approve its indigenous vaccine made on mRNA platform by Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals. Till now, for the age group below 12 years, India has approved Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin and Biological E’s Corbevax.
EFFICACY AFTER ONE DOSE SIMILAR TO ADULTS
The findings of the latest study are consistent with those reported in other studies showing the effectiveness of mRNA-1273 vaccine in reducing Covid-related hospital admissions during the circulation of the Delta variant and the neutralisation of variants, including the Omicron variant, after vaccination in children and adolescents.
However, the study also faced several limitations.
“Owing to the few cases of Covid-19 that occurred during the short, blinded phase of the trial, evaluation of the efficacy of mRNA-1273 after two injections was limited when the number of cases would be expected to be higher; nonetheless, the efficacy observed after one injection is reassuringly similar to that seen in adolescents and adults who have received mRNA-1273.”
Although the trial was powered to assess the safety of rare events, even rarer events were identified during the global distribution of Covid-19 vaccines; thus, continued vigilance in monitoring safety is warranted, it suggests.
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