The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is 73.2% effective in preventing Covid-19 among children aged 6 months to 4 years. The new data were presented by the companies on Tuesday (23), two months after the start of application of the immunizer in the United States for this age group.
The vaccine was authorized for children under five in the US in June, based on data that showed the immunizer generated an immune response similar to that of older age groups.
An initial analysis based on ten symptomatic Covid-19 cases in the study suggested a vaccine efficacy of 80.3%. But experts cautioned that the data were preliminary due to the low number of symptomatic cases.
The updated data released on Tuesday showed that 13 children had Covid-19 at least seven days after receiving a third dose of the vaccine, compared with 21 cases among those who received placebo – a substance with no effect on the body.
Most cases were caused by the variant Omicron BA.2 which was dominant in March and April, when the study was carried out.
Pfizer and BioNTech also said they are preparing a US authorization application for a so-called bivalent vaccine that targets Omicron’s BA.4/BA.5 subvariants for children under age 12.
The companies applied on Monday (22) for US authorization of the bivalent vaccine as a booster in people aged 12 and older.
Source: CNN Brasil
