In a key step towards ending the coronavirus pandemic, children up to 6 years of age will be tested with Vaccine covid-19. The University of Oxford has launched a new study to assess its safety vaccine with AstraZeneca in children for the first time.
In a new statement, the university says the study will assess the immune response in children aged 6 to 17, an age group hit hard through school closures due to the pandemic. About 300 volunteers are enrolled, expected to receive the first vaccinations this month.
In the randomized, single-blind study, up to 240 participants will receive the COVID vaccine, while the control group will receive a meningitis vaccine that is safe for children and produces a similar reaction.
“While most children are relatively unaffected by coronavirus and are unlikely to feel unwell with the infection, it is important to establish the safety and immune response to the vaccine in children and young people, as some children may benefit from vaccination,” said Andrew. Pollard, chief investigator of trials. These new studies will extend our understanding of SARS-CoV2 control to younger age groups.
A number of vaccines, including Oxford / AstraZeneca and Pfizer and Moderna formulas, which are widely used globally, have shown strong efficacy in preventing symptomatic infection. New data from Oxford earlier this month also provided the first evidence that its vaccine could not only prevent people from getting COVID-19, but could help substantially reduce its spread in the community.
Great Britain approved emergency use Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine at the end of December. Vaccine approval has been widely celebrated because it is cheaper to produce and easier to transport and store than other approved vaccines.
Researchers hope that spreading the vaccine to children will help alleviate some of the negative effects of the pandemic on young people around the world.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound negative impact on the education, social development and emotional well-being of children and adolescents, beyond the presentation of rare diseases and illnesses,” said Rinn Song of the Oxford Vaccine Group. Therefore, it is important to collect data on the safety and immune response to our coronavirus vaccine in these age groups so that they can potentially benefit from inclusion in vaccination programs in the near future.
Clinical trials are still in progress in the US from vaccine developers Pfizer and Moderna to test the safety and effectiveness of doses in children. Dr Anthony Fauci said last month that he hoped American children could be vaccinated “by the end of spring and early summer”.