COVID-19 vaccines and children

Hear what the experts have to say about the benefits of giving COVID-19 vaccines to children, in our vaccines and children webinar.

National Health minister Joe Phaahla has announced that the South African government will open COVID-19 vaccinations to children over the age of 12 following a recommendation made by the Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC) on vaccinations. Phaahla said that the rollout would officially begin on 20 October with a single dose of the Pfizer vaccine administered as part of the rollout. This means that clinical trials have proven the safety and efficacy of the vaccine in this age group.

With more research, facts are more certain

Naturally parents are concerned. This is a new world we find ourselves in with so many unknowns. The virus itself. The fast-tracked vaccines. The many risks of contracting COVID-19. The short- and long-term side effects after having the jab. So, it's hardly surprising that many parents may be feeling overwhelmed about this decision to vaccinate their children aged older than 12

It's here to stay

The general expert consensus is that the COVID-19 pandemic will become endemic and is not going to go away anytime soon. There's little doubt that, like the flu, we're going to have to live with it. A lot of reluctance to vaccinate our youth has to do with the fact that COVID-19 in children and adolescents has invariably been mild. But the problem is with the emergence of more and more variants, no one knows how these will affect our children in terms of severity of disease.

Vaccine risks versus COVID-19 risks

For many parents the risks of their children having the vaccine are greater than the risks posed by the virus. One concern is the issue of future fertility but there is no evidence that the COVID-19 vaccine has any impact upon this.

Parents also cite an association between myocarditis - inflammation of the heart muscle - and the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) in teenagers and young adults in the USA. This was recently investigated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who found that of the 1,200+ reported cases, most of them were mild. They also found that over 74% of vaccine-related hospitalisations in this age group lasted three days or less.

By comparison, 25% of adolescent COVID-19-related hospitalisations lasted six days or longer according to the CDC, with one of their studies revealing that almost one third of them were admitted to ICU. It's important to remember that some adolescents do develop complications when they get the virus, for example, Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C). The syndrome's associated heart complications have proven to be far more prevalent and long-lasting than with vaccine-related myocarditis in teens. And although COVID-19 related deaths in the under 17s are rare compared to adults, current data shows 326 USA deaths in this age group to date.

SAHPRA also explains: It is not yet clear if the very rare risk of heart inflammation seen mostly in young men who received the Pfizer vaccine is coincidental or caused by the vaccine. These effects were usually seen within two weeks after the second dose of the vaccine. These events are mostly mild and can be treated successfully, followed by a recovery shortly thereafter. People should therefore be aware of the symptoms and seek medical help immediately.

What about the vaccine's safety and side effects?

SAHPRA takes vaccine safety precautions very seriously. So all available clinical trial data is carefully examined before any decisions are made about authorising its use in the different age groups. They also closely work with vaccine manufacturers to monitor any signs of safety issues as public vaccination programmes continue to roll out.

Side effects are no different in children than they are in adults. According to Pfizer your child may have pain at the injection site (upper arm). Other possible side effects include:

• Headaches
• Sore joints and muscles
• Fever
• Chills.

All of these symptoms are temporary and usually resolve within 48 hours.

Three good reasons to vaccinate your children

• The risks of COVID-19 are far higher risks than the vaccine risks. This is the current expert opinion based on all the available data. While the Johns Hopkins Medical Center acknowledges that COVID-19 is usually milder than in adults, some children do get very sick. There are also complications and long-lasting symptoms that can affect their health and well-being.
• Children can transmit the virus to others if they're infected, even if they have no symptoms. The vaccine will help to prevent this spread and will also protect other family members and friends, especially the more vulnerable.
• According to the experts, every adult or child infected with the virus allows it to mutate and to create a variant that may prove to be more dangerous or more resistant to our available treatments and vaccines. So, the fewer the infections, the less chance for the development of more dangerous variants.

Visit our Understanding Vaccines hub to empower yourself with the #FactsAboutVaccs and all you need to know about COVID-19 vaccines.