Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine was 73% effective in protecting children younger than 5 as omicron spread in the spring, the company announced Tuesday.Vaccinations for babies, toddlers and preschoolers opened in the U.S.
in June after months of delay. Only about 6% of youngsters ages 6 months through 4 years had gotten at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by mid-August, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.Health authorities authorized tot-sized vaccine doses made by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech based on a study showing they were safe and produced high levels of virus-fighting antibodies.
But there was only preliminary data on how that translated into effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19.The new update analyzed COVID-19 diagnoses between March and June in Pfizer's ongoing study of the three-dose vaccine.
There were 21 COVID-19 cases among the 351 tots who got dummy shots -- compared to just 13 among the 794 youngsters given three vaccine doses.The child cases primarily were caused by the BA.2 omicron version that was circulating at the time.