儿童和COVID-19疫苗:父母需要知道的事情

Now that adolescents 和 teens can get vaccines, you may have questions if they should.

此时此刻, children as young as age 12 have been approved to receive a COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer only). That leaves many parents wondering whether they should have their kids vaccinated or not.

在一个 凯撒家庭基金会于2021年4月进行的一项调查, 在辉瑞疫苗被批准用于12-15岁儿童之前, 30% of parents said they would get their 12-15 year old child vaccinated right away, 26%的人说他们会等着看效果如何, 18% said they would do it only if required by schools 和 23% said they definitely would not vaccinate their kids.

The reality is that some parents can't decide if vaccinating kids against COVID-19 is the right thing to do. 他们担心疫苗的安全性和副作用. And they may be confused by misinformation circulating on the subject.

Here are answers to some of the most commonly asked questions from parents.

为什么COVID-19疫苗最初没有被批准用于儿童?

当疫苗刚开始研发的时候, the primary focus was on creating a vaccine that was safe 和 effective for adults, 谁更容易患COVID-19严重并发症.

当孩子感染COVID-19时, 他们的症状通常很轻微, 如果他们有症状的话, 因此，它们最初并没有在疫苗试验中得到优先考虑, 批准或推出. But that didn't mean vaccine manufacturers weren't thinking about making sure vaccines were safe for kids. They just wanted time to conduct trials specifically on different age groups to ensure that what they deemed safe for adults was also safe for younger 和 smaller bodies.

So if kids aren't at high risk for serious illness from COVID-19, why do they need vaccines?

尽管孩子的症状通常比成人轻, getting them vaccinated will help prevent them from getting typical COVID symptoms (similar to the 流感) or developing serious but rare complications from the virus. 给孩子接种疫苗也有助于保护家庭成员, 老师和其他与他们接触的人, since kids can transmit the virus even if they have mild or no symptoms. 另外, achieving herd immunity – which is needed to lessen the threat of COVID-19 for our country 和 the world – requires vaccination of a high percentage of the population 和 that means vaccinating kids as well as adults.

COVID-19疫苗对儿童安全吗?

2021年5月初, the Food 和 Drug Administration (FDA) declared that the Pfizer vaccine is safe for adolescents (age 12 和 older) 和 teens. 此前，它被批准用于16岁及以上的人群. Pfizer's clinical trial included more than 2,000 volunteers, ages 12 to 15. There were no cases of COVID-19 in any of the fully vaccinated participants. The FDA does not give out approval lightly – they only do so after reviewing evidence showing that the benefits of vaccination far outweigh any risks.

为什么辉瑞是唯一被批准用于儿童的COVID-19疫苗?

Every pharmaceutical company that makes COVID-19 vaccines has been conducting its own clinical trials. Pfizer was simply the first one to get approval from the FDA to administer their vaccine to people under 18. The others are also conducting clinical trials on people of varying ages 和 may be seeking approval for younger age groups if 和 when they can show it's safe.

儿童是否会经历与成人相同的疫苗副作用?

研究表明，当孩子有疫苗后的副作用, they're typically the same mild symptoms as those reported in adults. 常见的症状包括手臂疼痛, 乏力, 肌肉疼痛和发烧, 通常发生在注射后24-48小时.

Will my child be required to have vaccine proof to go back to in-person school?

The federal government has left it up to states to determine whether vaccine proof will be required for access to public places, 包括学校. Hundreds of colleges 和 universities have announced vaccine requirements for students beginning in fall 2021. Most public school districts are still working on their policies. Your child's school or daycare facility will let you know whether a COVID-19 vaccine will be needed for enrollment 和 what type of proof will be required, 如果有任何.

我的孩子也该接种其他疫苗了. 我们能一次拿到所有的吗?

The CDC recommends that people of all ages wait at least 14 days after other vaccines to get a COVID-19 vaccine – 和 that no other vaccines be given in the 14 days after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. This includes any vaccines or booster shots kids may need, as well as annual 流感 shots.