Healthcare

US authorizes booster of anti-covid vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 years

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Children aged 5 to 11 years will be able to receive a booster dose of the Covid-19 vaccine from the Pfizer laboratory, the American health authorities announced on Tuesday (17).

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the booster dose for this age group “to provide ongoing protection against Covid-19,” the agency explained in a statement.

A committee of experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will meet on Thursday to deliberate on the topic and define the recommendation for the booster dose, which must be applied at least five months after the first series. of two injections.

The dose used is 10 micrograms for both initial immunizations and extra doses (compared to 30 micrograms for those over 12 years of age).

The FDA authorization comes at a time when the United States is registering an increase in Covid infections, with almost 90,000 reported cases per day. Hospitalizations also increased.

Covid-19 “tends to be less severe in children than in adults,” FDA chief Robert Califf said in a statement. But “the wave linked to the omicron variant sickened children more, caused more hospitalizations and left babies with long-term sequelae,” he warned.

The United States has 28 million children between the ages of 5 and 11.

Americans over 50 are now ready for a second booster dose (the fourth dose in all).

astrazenecoronavaccoronaviruscovid vaccinecovid-19janssenJoe BidenleafpandemicPfizerU.SUSAvaccine

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