Pediatric Neurology

COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines: Benefits Outweigh Risks for Young Children, Infants

Lisa Kuhns, PhD
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Publish Date
Data captured from a risk-benefit analysis supports the use of primary series mRNA COVID-19 vaccines for young children and infants, regardless of underlying medical conditions or infection-induced immunity.

The benefits of receiving primary series mRNA COVID-19 vaccines outweigh the risks for children and infants aged 6 months to 4 years, according to results of a study published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.

Although 2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are authorized for use in children and infants as young as 6 months, vaccine coverage among this population remains very low. Due to safety concerns and low perceived benefit, parents are hesitant to vaccinate their children.

In this study, researchers compared the expected risks and benefits of primary series mRNA COVID-19 vaccines among young children and infants in the United States using a single health outcome scale (quality-adjusted life-years [QALYs]). Patients included in the analysis were aged 6 months to 4 years and stratified by age, sex, vaccine type (BNT162b2 or mRNA-1273), presence of underlying conditions, and presence of infection-induced immunity.

For infant boys aged between 6 and 11 months who received BNT162b2 and girls aged between 1 and 4 years who received mRNA-1273, both with underlying medical conditions and no infection-induced immunity, benefit risk ratios varied from 200.4 to 3.2, respectively. Further analysis between these groups showed that the benefit risk difference in QALYs per 100,000 vaccinated children ranged from 104.1 to 5.3, respectively.

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These results support the current recommendation that both children with underlying medical conditions and otherwise healthy children receive mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

Overall, benefit-risk ratios were greater in infants aged 6 to 11 months vs 1 to 4 months; in boys vs girls; in children with vs without underlying medical conditions; and in children with vs without infection-induced immunity.

Study limitations include the scarcity of data available for health utility or health-related quality of life score for young children, as well as a lack of data on the incidence of myocarditis after COVID-19 vaccination in children aged 6 months to 4 years.

According to the researchers, “These results support the current recommendation that both children with underlying medical conditions and otherwise healthy children receive mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.”

Disclosure: One study author declared affiliations with biotech, pharmaceutical, and/or device companies. Please see the original reference for a full list of authors’ disclosures.

This article originally appeared on Infectious Disease Advisor

References:

Kitano T, Salmon DA, Dudley MZ, Thompson DA, Engineer L. Benefit-risk assessment of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in children aged 6 months to 4 years in the Omicron era. J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc. Published online January 17, 2024. doi:10.1093/jpids/piae002