The vaccines undergo particularly rigorous safety testing before being approved for use in the general population. However, no medication is guaranteed to be free from side effects. So what are the side effects that children receiving the COVID-19 vaccine may face?
More than three-quarters of parents reported that they were “very” or “somewhat” concerned.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 on October 29, 2021. According to a recent survey by KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor. Just over a quarter of the parents of children in this age group are anxious for their child to be vaccinated as soon as possible.
Although this may come as surprising, other survey results shed some light on the reasons behind this hesitancy: fear of side effects.
However, doubts about vaccines are not only due to fear of an impact on fertility. More than three-quarters of parents reported that they were “very” or “somewhat” concerned that their child might experience serious side effects or that not enough is known about the long-term effects of the COVID-19 vaccine.
So far, the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna have received approval in the US for children 12 years and older, and the Pfizer vaccine was approved for children ages 5 to 12 in late October 2021.
So what are the possible side effects?
Pfizer Senior Vice President of Clinical Research and Development for Vaccines, Dr. Bill Gruber, broke down the drug company’s data from its phase 2 and 3 trials at the FDA’s Vaccine and Related Biologicals Advisory Committee meeting on 26 October 2021.
It revealed that there were very few serious adverse events and no deaths during phase 2 and 3 trials of children aged 5 to 12 years. He also explained that the side effects were similar to those experienced by adults.
The most common side effects in children after the second dose
The most common side effects in children after the second dose of the vaccine (reactions to the first dose were less common). They were fatigue and headache, and 39.4% and 28% of the 5 to 12-year-olds experienced these symptoms, respectively.
This compares with 65.6% and 60.9% of adults. Of note is data showing that post-vaccination fever and chills were lower among children ages 5 to 12 than among children 12 to 65 years.
Only 6.5% of children aged 5 to 12 years experienced fever after vaccination, compared with 17.2% of those older than 12 years. Additionally, only 9.8% of people ages 5-12 experienced chills, compared to 40% of people ages 12 and older.
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