The American biotech company Moderna declared Thursday that it has submitted an application for authorization in the United States so that its vaccine against covid-19 can be administered to children between the ages of six months and less than six years.
Children under the age of six are the only age group that has so far not had access to anticovid vaccines in the United States and in many other countries.
“We believe (this vaccine) will be able to safely protect these children against SARS-CoV-2, which is so important in our ongoing fight against Covid-19, and will be especially welcomed by parents and caregivers,” he said. in a statement the CEO of the firm, Stephane Bancel.
In March, Moderna announced the results of a study that showed the two-shot regimen was safe and produced a strong immune response.
Two 25-microgram doses given to infants, toddlers, and preschoolers were found to elicit similar levels of antibodies as two 100-microgram doses given to 18- to 25-year-olds, thereby providing similar levels of protection against severe cases of the virus.
The trial included 4,200 children between the ages of two and six and 2,500 babies between the ages of six months and two years.
However, the company found relatively low efficacy in dealing with infection. The efficacy of the vaccine in children from six months to two years was 51%, and 37% in the age group from two to five years.
Moderna said it is currently studying booster doses for children of all ages.
However, the lower efficacy of the two doses may present an obstacle to authorization.
In February, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) postponed an expert group meeting to study Pfizer and BioNTech’s covid vaccine for children under five, saying it wanted to see performance data. of the three doses before studying the matter.
