Pfizer says two shots of Covid vaccine ‘didn’t perform adequately’ in kids

We are almost two years into the Covid pandemic.

And with fresh restrictions imposed on us living here in Ireland, I think we are all beginning to feel more than a little hopeless about the situation, which now is starting to seem more or less neverending. As countries across the world are scrambling to administer booster doses to adults, many are also getting ready to start vaccinating children in an effort to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus. However, yesterday Pfizer revealed that their clinical trials of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine did not did not produce an adequate immune response in kids aged 2 to 5 to effectively defend against Covid. The trial results showed that after two doses of the 3 mcg shot, which is one-tenth of the adult dose, children between the ages of 6 months to 2 years had a robust immune response comparable to that of 16- to 25-year-olds. However, kids between ages 2 and 5 did not mount a similarly strong immune response.

Breaking News: Pfizer said its two-shot vaccine didn’t perform adequately in children 2 to 5, and it will test a three-dose series for official authorization. https://t.co/G8NhvNAhz8

— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 17, 2021

This might feel like a setback for parents who have been hoping to have their younger kids vaccinated soon too, but Pfizer announced they will now continue their clinical trials, testing a three-dose vaccine regimen for kids in the 6 months to under 5-years-of age group. Rather than testing a higher dose of the vaccine in the 2 to 5 age group, the companies will seek approval for the three-dose regimen, with kids receiving a third shot at least two months after their second shot. Whether kids ages 5 to 11 need a third dose is also being investigated.