Boston Children’s doctor on Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for young children
Updated: 5:59 PM EDT Apr 28, 2022
ERIKA: MERODNA SUBMITS THE FSTIR APPLICATION FOR A VACCINE TO PROTECT BABIES AND TODDLERS FROM COVID-19. HERE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS IS DR. KRISTIN MOFFITT, AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST AT BOSTON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL. IT IS WHAT SO MANY PARENTS HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR. IT’S GREAT TO SEE YOU. N:BE AS YOU WELL KNOW, BOTH MODERNA AND PFIZER HAVE BEEN TESTING VACCINES FOR T YOUNGEST AGE GROUP, BUT MODERNA IS THE FIRST TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION TO THE FDA. WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT DOSING, AND SAFETY? >> WHAT WE KNOW FROM TSHI FILE IN CHILDREN AGE SIX MONTHS TO SIX YEARS IS THAT THEY RECEIVED TWO 25 MICROGRAM DOSES. THAT IS A QUARTER OF THE ADULT DOSEF O THE DHARNA VACCINE WHEN IT HAS BEEN GIVEN AS A PRIMARY SERIES. WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR ABOUT SAFETY, IT JUST COMES FROM THE ESPRS RELEASES, WE HAVE NOT SEEN THE DATA OURSELVES YET, BUT THEY REPORT A VERY FAVORABLE SAFETY PROFILE WITHOUT ANY SERIOUS ADVERSE EFCTS FEBEGIN NOTED AND WITH ONLY ABOUT 15% OF SUBJESCT EXPERIENCING FEVER RELATED TO THE VACCINE. THAT IS WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR. ERIKA: WHAT DOES THE PRESS RELEASE SAY ABOUT HOW WELL IT PROTECTS AGAINST SEVERE SYMPTOMS? AND DOES IT OFFER ANY PROTECTION AGAINST INFECTION? >> WE ARE EVALUATING THESE IN THE AER OF OMICRON. SEVERE ILLNESS REQUIRING HOSPITALIZATION IS RELATIVELY UNCOMMON IN CHILDREN. THIS STUDY SIZE WAS NOT LARGE ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO EVALUATE SEVERE ILLNESS AS AN OUTCOME. HOWEVER, WE KNOW THE ANTIBODY RESPONSES THAT TSEHE CHILDREN WERE ABLE TO GENERATE AND WE OWKN FROM THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SIMILAR VACCISNE, SIMILAR TO CHILDREN AND ADULTS AT PREVENTING ILLNESS, THAT W EWOD ULABSOLUTELY EXPECT THESE VACCINES TO BE ABLE TO PREVENT SEVERE ILLNESS AND HOSPITALIZATION IN THE VERY YOUNG CHILDREN WHO RECEIVE THEM TOO. IN TERMSF REMO O MILD INFECTION, THEY DID DETERMINED THAT VACCINATNIO PREVENTED ABOUT 50% OF MILD BUT SYMPTOMATIC INFECTIONS IN THOSE SIX MONTHS TO TWO YEARS OF AGE, AND PREVENTED ALMOST 40% OF MILD INCTFEIONS IN THEOS BETWEEN 2-6 YEARS OF AGE. THOSE NUMBERS ARE SIMILAR TO VACCINE EFFECTIVENESS IN OLRDE VEGETABLES — OLDER INDIVIDUALS INFECTED WITH OMICRON. BEN: IT DOES SOUND LIKE THE VERDICT IS OUT ON A NUMBER OF THESE ISSUES. WE KNOW PFIZER IS TESTING A THIRD DOSE FOR THIS AGE GROUP. WHAT WOULD YOU TELL PARENTS, AND DO YOU THINK THE FDA SHOULD WAIT FOR PFIZER BEFORE AUTHORIZING ANY VACCINE FOR THIS AGE GROUP? >> I THINK IF WETA SRT WITH THE FDA REVIEW OF THE DATA, I’M NOT SURE IT MAKES SENSE FR THE FDA TO WAIT FOR THE PFIZER DATA TO BE SUBMIEDTT TO COMPARE BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. DOING SO COULD LEAD TO UNNECESSARY DELAYS IN HAVING A SAFE AND EFFECTIVE VACCINE AUTHORIZED FOR VERY YOUNG CHILDREN. MANY PARENTS ARE VERY EAGER TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO IMMUNIZE THEIR YOUNG CHILDREN WITH A SAFE AND EFFECTIVE VACCINE. THAT IS ESPECIALLY TRUE FOR FAMILIES WHO MAYBE HAVE A CHILD WITH AN UNDERLYING MEDICAL CONDITION THAT PUTS THEM AT RISK FOR COVID-19 OR MAYBE THE IRES SOMEONE IN YOUR HOUSEHOLD WITH AT RISK. SO I THINK THE DATA SHLDOU BE EVALUATED AND DECISIONS SHOULD BE MADE BASED ON THOSE DATA WITHOUT NECESSARILY HOLDING UP DECISIONS FOR DATA THAT MAY BE COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE.
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Boston Children’s doctor on Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for young children
Updated: 5:59 PM EDT Apr 28, 2022
Cambridge-based Moderna has submitted its first application for emergency use of its vaccine to protect babies and toddlers from COVID-19.
Cambridge-based Moderna has submitted its first application for emergency use of its vaccine to protect babies and toddlers from COVID-19.
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