Can kids get the COVID-19 vaccine right now?
Children may not get a COVID-19 vaccine on priority but there are a few questions parents have regarding the vaccine.
Even though kids do not presume a heavy risk for COVID, they can act as super-spreaders, and most importantly some may even suffer from life-long complications, which has been reported in certain cases.
Top 5 COVID vaccine queries answered
Many also believe that having a vaccine ready is the best indicator for families and educators to have kids back in school and reopen other institutions and safeguard everybody's collective health.
At the same time, there are also some who are hesitant to use the vaccine on kids. Unlike usual and popular pediatric vaccines, COVID-19 vaccines are experimental and not fully safe and risk-free, which may mean that some kids would be unprotected.
While vaccine trials for kids are underway, we clear out the top 5 doubts and concerns regarding a COVID-19 vaccine for children:
When would a COVID vaccine be really available?
COVID-19 vaccine doses are being administered on an emergency basis- for the high-risk groups right now, followed by healthy adults.
Since neither kids, pregnant women or breastfeeding moms were part of the clinical trials, it is being expected that these groups may have to wait till the second half of 2021 to receive approved, cleared doses which would work well on them.
There is no surety right now that the current vaccine doses would not work for kids, but doing so may go against scientific ruling. Hence, kids and other priority groups have been pushed to the end of the line right now. In India too, it might take a long while for the vaccination to happen since no indigenous companies have announced plans to include kids in their trials as of right now. Only once the trials commence will we get a clearer picture.
Would children require additional shots than adults?
Kids' immunity works a little differently than adults. Some are more equipped to fight out viruses, some are still growing. Many wonder if kids would need more vaccine doses or lesser than adults.
There is no clear answer to this right now. While we don't know for sure if COVID vaccination schedule would be any different for kids, but it could change as and when testing starts and we get more results.
Of all the companies that have planned to roll-out vaccines for kids, Moderna and Oxford have announced only two-dose regimen for kids. Some may require the use of immunity adjuvants could be used to strengthen their bodies.
What happens if I don’t vaccinate my kids?
With the hope many have about the arrival of a COVID vaccine, there are many who are hesitant about using one. Surveys suggest that anti-vaxxers or those who are against the usage of a vaccine are rising in numbers, which means that there will be a section of people who would not be interested in vaccinating their children. Hesitancy is also strangely flaring up in India.
In such a case, it would be difficult for the pandemic to really end. Children may not catch severe illnesses, but they can act as reservoirs of the viral load, transmit the infection onto the one who might be unsafe or have zero immunity against COVID-19. This could be highly unsafe in an environment like a classroom or college, where there may be a lot many people at risk.
Will there be side-effects?
Since inoculation is still in the first phase, we don't have enough data to support or negate the statement right now.
What we must know is that all side-effects do carry certain side-effects- reactogenic effects which are temporary in nature. While most of them wane over a while, the only difference with a COVID vaccine for kids could be the duration. For example, since kids usually have stronger immune systems, they may be certain ones who show stronger side-effects.
Allergic reactions, especially for those who are prone to issues may be there as well.
Do they still have to keep wearing masks?
A vaccine may solve the majority of our problems but it doesn’t mean the kids or the adults can go scot-free. As many experts have said, we will still need to practice a basic set of precautions, wear a mask and keep a safe distance to be fully safe against SARS-COV-2, and any other virus which may come our way. Vaccines are also fully effective if administered according to a proper dosing regime. Hence, masks still are the best way to ensure personal safety and cut down on COVID risk in their trying times.