Ministry of Health approves two Covid-19 vaccines for children

Ms. Duong Thi Hong, Deputy Director of the Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, said this at an online training session for 63 provinces and cities to implement the Covid-19 vaccination campaign for children aged 12-17. This campaign was officially launched from the beginning of November nationwide, following a roadmap from high to low age groups, prioritizing vaccination for the 16-17 age group first, gradually lowering the age according to the progress of vaccine supply and the epidemic situation in the locality.

Illustration photo.

"Vaccinations for children are carried out first in localities that have undergone social distancing, have high Covid-19 infection rates, and have high population density and high risk of infection," said Ms. Hong.

According to the instructions of the Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, localities organize vaccination for children in the form of campaigns, at fixed vaccination facilities, mobile vaccination points and schools.

Children aged 12-17 who are attending school are listed by grade. Vaccination is given first to high school age groups, in order from grades 12 to 11 and 10; followed by middle school students from grades 9, 8, and 7.

Children who do not attend school will be surveyed and listed in the community to ensure that they do not miss out on vaccination opportunities. The vaccine used to vaccinate children is Pfizer's Comirnaty vaccine, used similarly to people aged 18 and over; with a dose of 0.3 ml per injection, administered intramuscularly. The vaccination schedule includes 2 injections, with an interval of 3 to 4 weeks (21-28 days) between the 2 injections.

Parents and guardians must sign.Vaccination consent formfor children, at the same time prepare children mentally and physically before vaccination, coordinate to monitor children's health after vaccination.

Professor Dang Duc Anh, Director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, emphasized that vaccination for children is important, first of all to protect children's health in the context of the complicated pandemic. At the same time, vaccination in this age group contributes to increasing vaccine coverage in the community.

Around the world, many companies such as Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, and Pfizer continue to test at this age or younger, and submit applications for regulatory approval.

Pfizer Vaccinehas been injected into children aged 12-17 in about 30 countries around the world, effectively preventing more than 90% of Covid-19 symptoms. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on October 23 recognized that the Pfizer vaccine meets the standards for children aged 5-11, and may grant emergency use authorization for this age group in the near future. In addition to common post-injection reactions that occur in adults, including fever, muscle aches, injection site pain... a rare symptom recorded in children after injection is myocarditis, but most are mild and recover quickly.

Moderna Vaccinehas been approved for children aged 12 to 17 in Europe. The European Medicines Agency studied the vaccine with more than 3,700 children, recording antibody responses equivalent to adults. Side effects in children are similar to adults, typically fatigue, headache, muscle and joint pain... Moderna also expects the US to license the vaccine for children. Director Staphane Bancel said the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will likely license the Moderna vaccine for children aged 12 to 17 between November 15 and 18.

As of October 29, Vietnam has accessed 107 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine, and has administered more than 78 million doses.