With the approval of the European Medicine Agency (EMA, for its acronym in English), it opens the possibility to further fence the SARS-COV-2 with the immunization of children between 5 and 11 years old.
Since the Spanish Society of Hospital Pharmacy (SEFH) offer the keys to solve doubts about pediatric vaccination:
We can not forget that children are the ones who have most suffered the consequences of the pandemic. For example, the non-administration of vaccines of your calendar, diseases that may have direct serious consequences on your health, something we have seen that has recovered rapidly thanks to the good pediatric health system we have.
Regarding vaccines against Covid, it is necessary to be honest and say that as well as any medication, they have adverse effects, said that, it must be said that RNA-based VOCID vaccines are from the safest and most effective in history.
Currently, the European Community has two approved RNA vaccines, known as Pfizer and modern. In Spain they are available for children of 12 years or older with high-risk pathologies and for children born in 2002 or later. If the parents put a table with the pros and cons, the effectiveness would be clearly in the first column for both vaccines.
When a vaccination campaign is projected, it is provided with sufficient doses. Comment and this would give for another debate, possibly for this Christmas, we have the indication to vaccinate children from 5 to 12 years, whose data has already been presented to the European Agency for the Medication for its study.
First I want to clarify concepts. We are lucky that approved vaccines have a very high effectiveness in front of the delta variant that is circulating. Vaccines were designed to prevent serious illness, and we also know that they are also able to reduce the transmission of the disease in half.
This makes sense, since its ability to protect the upper airway is limited, something that does not change the usefulness of vaccines. If we look at today's data, we see that the percentage of vaccinated adolescents against Covid in Andalusia is greater than 83%, and when we consulted the table of age infections we see that the greatest contagious groups are under 12 years of age and the adults between 30 and 40 years old.
I am convinced that the vaccination of teenagers is the reason for the low contagion in that age range. On the role occupied by children in the pandemic is still a matter of debate. There are studies that show a similar transmission in children, adolescents or adults, and others who say is lower in children and adolescents.
Currently, the European Medicine Agency tells us that the benefit exceeds the risks in this population group.
We have to bear in mind that vaccination has two sides a selfish and another altruistic. The personal benefit is checked when the percentage of vaccinates over 80 years is 100%, are very clear that the vaccine prevents a serious course disease if they become infected.
And then the generosity of vaccinating public health, something that in Spain is traditionally observed unlike other countries, this has allowed us to have the best vaccination results in the world. We currently have children with masks, I am convinced that vaccination will allow cutting any link from the transmission chain and ending this pandemic.
Vaccines in children are safe and effective, although within a global context of limited supply should be prioritized to groups of greatest risk, such as healthcare. Although at the same time it is naive to think that if I do not put it, that vaccine will go to one of those countries that need it.
Sooner or later, vaccinated or not, we will be in contact with the virus, the vaccine is a tool that will allow us to be prepared for that encounter. The question that I would make would be the next, what is better natural immunity or vaccination?
* Francisco Araujo, a hospital pharmacist at the Virgen Children's Hospital del Rocío de Sevilla and spokesman for the Spanish Society of Hospital Pharmacy (SEFH).
Date Of Update: 25 November 2021, 07:33
