Kamil Macniak/Shutterstock Tara Hurst, Birmingham City University Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine became available for children aged five to 11 in the UK in April 2022. Those aged 12 and up had already been eligible since 2021. But if you have a child aged under five, you might be wondering, when will they be able to be vaccinated against COVID-19? Children under …
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The FDA authorizes Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 – a pediatrician explains how the drug was tested for safety and efficacy
For many parents, the long-awaited COVID-19 vaccine authorization for younger kids can’t come soon enough. Vladimir Vladimirov/E+ via Getty Images Debbie-Ann Shirley, University of Virginia Elementary school children in the United States will soon have one more layer of protection to keep them safe from COVID-19. On Oct. 29, 2021, the Food and Drug Administration authorized emergency use of the …
Read More »How can scientists update coronavirus vaccines for omicron? A microbiologist answers 5 questions about how Moderna and Pfizer could rapidly adjust mRNA vaccines
Some vaccines use mRNA to make copies of the triangular red spike proteins to induce immunity. Juan Gaertner/Science Photo Library via Getty Images Deborah Fuller, University of Washington If the omicron variant of the coronavirus is different enough from the original variant, it’s possible that existing vaccines won’t be as effective as they have been. If so, it’s likely that …
Read More »COVID vaccines: combining AstraZeneca and Pfizer may boost immunity – new study
Tracy Hussell, University of Manchester Late last year, I asked: is it safe to have more than one type of COVID-19 vaccine? A trial has now addressed that question, as well as what effect combining different vaccine types has on immunity. Most COVID-19 vaccines require two doses, and the usual strategy is to give people the same vaccine type for …
Read More »COVID-19 vaccines: why it’s important you get your second dose
Rebecca Aicheler, Cardiff Metropolitan University Vaccination is the safest way to gain immunity to the coronavirus, and with most COVID-19 vaccines, you need two doses to get the greatest possible protection. Immunologists call this method of giving people multiple doses “prime-boosting”. Essentially, you first teach the immune system what it is looking for – you prime it with the first …
Read More »A mix-and-match approach to COVID-19 vaccines could provide logistical and immunological benefits
One of this and one of that might be a good strategy to coronavirus vaccination. SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Maureen Ferran, Rochester Institute of Technology While it’s now pretty easy to get a COVID-19 shot in most places in the U.S., the vaccine rollout in other parts of the world has been slow or inconsistent due to shortages, uneven …
Read More »Pfizer jab approved for children, but first other people need to be vaccinated
Dominic Wilkinson, University of Oxford; Jonathan Pugh, University of Oxford, and Julian Savulescu, University of Oxford Moderna and Pfizer have released data suggesting that their vaccines are well tolerated in adolescents and highly effective in preventing COVID-19. Canada, the US and the EU have already authorised the Pfizer vaccine in children as young as 12. And the UK has just …
Read More »Mounting evidence suggests COVID vaccines do reduce transmission. How does this work?
Jennifer Juno, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity and Adam Wheatley, The University of Melbourne Since COVID-19 vaccines began rolling out across the world, many scientists have been hesitant to say they can reduce transmission of the virus. Their primary purpose is to prevent you from getting really sick with the virus, and it quickly became clear the …
Read More »COVID-19 vaccines: how and when will lower-income countries get access?
Rory Horner, University of Manchester COVID-19 vaccination programmes are gathering pace in high-income countries, but for much of the world, the future looks bleaker. Although a number of middle-income countries have started rolling out vaccines, widespread vaccination could still be years away. The first two COVID-19 vaccines authorised in Europe and the United States – made by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna …
Read More »Should pregnant women get the COVID-19 vaccine? Will it protect against asymptomatic infections and mutated viruses? An immunologist answers 3 questions
I am a physician, and I just got my first shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. William Petri, CC BY-SA William Petri, University of Virginia This week I was vaccinated against COVID-19 with the Pfizer mRNA vaccine, which brought to mind some frequently asked questions about the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. I am a professor of infectious diseases at the …
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