Answering listeners’ questions about COVID vaccines for young children : NPR

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

Many mother and father like Cassandra Schwartz (ph) have been ready with bated breath for the COVID vaccine to turn out to be accessible to their very younger youngsters.

CASSANDRA SCHWARTZ: My child’s been in a grocery retailer one time in her total life. We do not go anyplace that is inside along with her, you understand, that is not, like, a buddy’s home that we absolutely vetted or her day care.

CHANG: Now that youngsters from 6 months to five years previous are eligible for the vaccine, many are respiration a sigh of aid. However that does not imply everyone seems to be. The latest Kaiser Household Basis ballot discovered that solely about 1 in 5 mother and father will vaccinate their toddlers straight away. Loads of folks nonetheless have questions in regards to the vaccines. And right here to reply a few of them are NPR well being correspondent Rob Stein and Dr. Nia Heard-Garris. She’s a pediatrician and researcher at Feinberg College of Drugs at Northwestern College and on the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Kids’s Hospital of Chicago. Welcome to each of you.

ROB STEIN, BYLINE: Good to be right here.

NIA HEARD-GARRIS: Thanks for having us.

CHANG: Effectively, thanks for being right here. Rob, I need to begin with an replace on the entire marketing campaign to vaccinate this final group to turn out to be eligible. We’re speaking about children youthful than age 5. How are issues going thus far in that marketing campaign?

STEIN: Effectively, you understand, the federal authorities hasn’t launched any laborious numbers but about what number of children have gotten the pictures. However the early indication thus far is that the demand for the pictures for these littlest ones resides as much as expectations, which, frankly, have been very low. That is as a result of most mother and father of youngsters ages 5 to 11 nonetheless have not gotten their children vaccinated, despite the fact that they have been eligible for months. And the mother and father of the youthful children are much more reluctant. The tempo at which states began off ordering the vaccine was fairly lackluster. So the Biden administration has been warning that it’s going to take some time to persuade most mother and father to get their pictures for his or her little children.

CHANG: What about this complete alternative between Pfizer versus Moderna for actually younger children? Is there a choice that you’ve?

HEARD-GARRIS: This query retains developing for lots of my sufferers. We actually suppose that the Pfizer and Moderna have equal efficacy, which means that they’re each are efficient and so they’re each going to maintain your children secure in opposition to COVID, you understand, or a minimum of forestall them from being within the hospital and getting actually, actually sick. So, backside line, simply go get no matter you may. They’re each secure and efficient.

CHANG: I’ll begin now with Amanda Grey from Bangor, Maine. She writes, quote, “I really feel like I’ve been ready two-plus years for this information that I might lastly get my daughter vaccinated. And right here I’m pondering possibly it is best to attend. The present COVID pressure isn’t as deadly, particularly in younger youngsters. Do I wait to vaccinate until proper earlier than again to highschool? Ought to I wait till a extra aggressive and deadly pressure circulates, maybe this winter?” OK. Dr. Heard-Garris, what do you say to Amanda Grey?

HEARD-GARRIS: I say, Amanda, I hear you. I get it. You are not alone. However I need to let you understand, you understand, omicron could seem much less virulent as a result of there is a truthful variety of people who have already been uncovered to COVID. So it really presents some safety to the remainder of us. And in order that’s why it appears much less virulent. However for a kid that has not been uncovered or vaccinated to COVID, they nonetheless face the identical danger of mortality, and so they nonetheless face the identical danger of hospitalization. So I might say, Amanda, do not wait. Go get your child vaccinated. We have been ready for 2 years. Exit. Do it.

CHANG: Subsequent step is Felix Ortiz from Canton, Ohio.

FELIX ORTIZ: Why is it taking lengthy for a few of the native well being departments, in addition to youngsters’s hospitals, to have the ability to get the best doses? I’ve contacted each of mine right here, and I have been advised that it is likely to be till early July earlier than they’re capable of get the best doses.

CHANG: OK. So for the mother and father who need to simply go and get their children vaccinated, they cannot. Rob, are you able to reply this query from Felix Ortiz?

STEIN: One motive I have been listening to is the best way they have been packaged, consider it or not. They arrive in 10-dose vials which have for use inside 12 hours. And lots of docs are apparently hesitant to order the vaccines as a result of they do not have 10 children to vaccinate each time they puncture a vial, and so they’re afraid they’re going to find yourself losing a whole lot of vaccine. I talked about this with Claire Hannan. She’s the chief director of the Affiliation of Immunization Managers.

CLAIRE HANNAN: It is OK to waste vaccine. They should fear extra about losing a chance to vaccinate than to fret about losing the 9 remaining doses within the vial.

STEIN: You realize, that is as a result of there’s loads of vaccine accessible. And despite the fact that COVID-19 would not essentially pose as nice a danger to children because it does to older folks, it nonetheless could be fairly harmful.

CHANG: OK. Let’s now transfer on to a query from Allison Cloyd from Arvada, Colo. She writes, quote, “with the efficacy of Moderna being a lot decrease for the under-5 crowd and Pfizer having a really small pattern dimension, is it value having my 3-year-old vaccinated if she examined constructive for COVID in February? How does that calculus change understanding we now have a 10-week-old child who cannot be vaccinated but however is breastfed – parentheses, I am triple vaxxed – and was nonetheless in utero once I had COVID at that very same time?” Dr. Heard-Garris, there’s loads to unpack right here, however possibly you can provide some recommendation to Allison right here.

HEARD-GARRIS: You realize, I feel it is a good query, particularly since, you understand, her baby, Allison’s baby, was really constructive for COVID-19 in February. And despite the fact that she had it in February, her immunity is beginning to wane. So we are saying about, you understand, 30 to 90 days after getting COVID-19 an infection is a perfect time. It is nonetheless secure. You may instantly get your COVID-19 vaccination proper after. However if you wish to wait a while, you understand, 30 to 90 days continues to be the secure window. She’s nicely past that now. So I feel it is time, particularly as a result of she has a susceptible 10-week-old at dwelling.

CHANG: All proper. And our last listener query is from Vadnais Heights, Minn.

HOPE SAVARIA: Howdy. My title is Hope Savaria. My query is, what types of unintended effects ought to we anticipate for the 24 hours or so after the vaccine? Will it’s just like these seen in adults, gentle flu-like signs? And is there something we are able to do to assist mitigate these results, reminiscent of administering youngsters’s Tylenol or ibuprofen earlier than the vaccine?

CHANG: I bear in mind I had a extremely swollen left armpit. What do you suppose, Dr. Heard-Garris? What sort of signs will we see in these younger children?

HEARD-GARRIS: So typically children may have fever. They will have some ache on the web site and redness and swelling at that injection web site. And that is actually just like a few of the different vaccines that we usually give. Additionally they is likely to be irritable. They is likely to be fussy. They is likely to be somewhat bit extra sleepy or not need to eat as a lot as they usually eat. All, once more, fairly, fairly frequent. However particularly with the COVID-19 vaccines, they could have some swelling. So similar to you, Ailsa had some swelling underneath your arms and others might need swelling of their groin (ph) space. And that is simply the place their lymph nodes are. So the lymph nodes form of get larger and swollen. It is a signal that your physique’s responding. In order that lymph node swelling is somewhat bit extra frequent in older children, we have seen, and adults, however your small baby may develop it, too. So it is necessary to concentrate on that. And I might say these signs present up 1 to three days form of after they’ve gotten their shot. So if it is weeks and weeks later, I might advise mother and father to see their pediatrician.

After which the opposite query, you understand, about Tylenol and ibuprofen – and there is a whole lot of controversy about this. I do not suppose within the scientific world we actually know if you happen to give Tylenol and ibuprofen earlier than you give the vaccine, if that can really reduce your physique’s response to the vaccine. So I might say to attend till your baby develops any signs. So if they’ve fever or if they don’t seem to be feeling nicely, then go forward and provides the Tylenol and ibuprofen. However let the vaccine do what it does finest earlier than you give these medicines.

CHANG: That was Dr. Nia Heard-Garris, a pediatrician and researcher at Feinberg College of Drugs at Northwestern College and on the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Kids’s Hospital of Chicago. And he or she was joined by NPR well being correspondent Rob Stein. Thanks to each of you.

STEIN: Positive, good to be right here. Thanks for having me.

HEARD-GARRIS: Thanks for having me.

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