Global Pediatric Pulmonology Alliance (GPPA) proposal for COVID-19 vaccination in children

Do we need to vaccinate every child against COVID-19: What evidence suggests—A systematic review of opinions

“…Regardless of symptoms, studies on acute or previous COVID-19 infections in children and adolescents have shown that the infection incidence is comparable to that of adults. A high disease burden despite mild symptoms favors COVID-19 vaccination in children ( 21 , 26 , 27 , 32 , 36 , 38 , 48 , 72 , 77 , 78 ). According to a multicentric surveillance study from many nations, the infection rate (laboratory-confirmed cases) among kids was as high as 18%.…”

“…Although World Health Organization (WHO) has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech (BNT162b2) vaccine and Moderna for children vaccination with an efficacy of 90.7% (5–11 years) and 100.0% (12–17 years), India's covaxine vaccine shows 95–98% efficacy (2–18 years) and Soberana 02 of Cuba (92.4%), Sinopharma, and Sinovac vaccine also shows a high level of safety and efficacy among children ( 9 , 81 – 86 ). There are 18 studies ( 19 , 21 , 22 , 26 , 27 , 36 , 39 , 40 , 51 , 56 , 57 , 60 , 69 , 72 – 74 , 76 , 78 ) which favor COVID vaccination in children in relation to safety, efficacy, and effectiveness, similarly 6 studies ( 5 , 23 , 30 , 70 , 71 , 75 ) were raising concern about vaccine safety, efficacy, and effectiveness. And 16 studies were neutral or uncertain ( 16 , 17 , 31 , 40 – 43 , 45 , 52 , 53 , 55 , 58 , 63 , 65 , 68 , 77 ).…”

“…It is also a fact that overlapping clinical presentation of COVID-19 with various childhood upper respiratory tract infections leads to misclassification as well as underestimation of COVID-19 in this age group ( 88 ). Authors have found that 21 articles ( 16 , 17 , 19 , 21 , 22 , 26 , 27 , 36 , 37 , 42 , 57 , 58 , 60 , 61 , 64 , 66 – 68 , 70 , 72 , 74 ) were pointing toward the role of COVID-19 vaccine in prevention of infection among children, whereas five articles ( 5 , 20 , 24 , 30 , 31 ) were not finding any significant role. The COVID-19 vaccine is having a definitive role in prevention among high-risk children ( 37 , 89 , 90 ).…”

The COVID-19 pandemic in children and young people during 2020-2021: A complex discussion on vaccination

“…Therefore, European Pediatric Societies recommended against giving the vaccine to children younger than 12 years before “rigorous clinical trials are completed, adverse events carefully assessed, and not until vaccines are authorized and adequate dosage established by the respective national agencies”, as this would ensure that vaccines were safe and effective for this age group [ 72 ]. With similar caution, vaccination was endorsed in principle as a positive and safe public health measure by the Expert Panel on Infectious Diseases and COVID-19 of the Global Pediatric Pulmonology Alliance (GPPA), as well as the number of relevant Chinese medical and pediatric authorities [ 79 , 83 ].…”

Uptake, effectiveness and safety of COVID-19 vaccines in children and young people in Scotland: Protocol for early pandemic evaluation and enhanced surveillance of COVID-19 (EAVE II)

“…Weekly rates of acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) positive cases among children and young people (CYP) are increasing in many countries [ 1 , 2 ]. With the emergence of the B.1.617.2 (Delta) SARS-CoV-2 variant, younger populations appear to be more affected than adults, most likely due to the fact that many adults now have at least some protection from vaccination [ 3 ]. For example, in a representative population-based survey in England between May and June 2021, prevalence of swab positivity was 2.5 times higher in those aged 5-49 years compared to those aged 50 years or more, with most infections in the younger group occurring in the unvaccinated population [ 4 ].…”