At today’s meeting, Pfizer’s representative, William Gruber, MD, said the 10-microgram dose was chosen because it was less reactogenic with similar immunogenicity as larger doses.
— from an article published by the University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, October 26, 2012.
I have no idea what Dr. William Gruber meant about the 10-microgram dose. “Reactogenic” and “immunogenicity” are not in my vocabulary. Maybe I should have gone to college.
But at least San Juan Basin Public Health is happy. The Durango-based public health agency announced this week that they’re “pleased to announce 5- to 11-year-olds are now eligible for Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in La Plata and Archuleta counties.”
The dose injected into children is less than the adult dose many Daily Post readers may have received. Like, only 10-micrograms. If that seems like a minuscule amount of medicine to justify a big needle stuck into your arm, many children will agree with you.
But it’s a really positive step, if you work in the public health industry.
“The eligibility of 5 to 11-year-olds for COVID-19 vaccine is a really positive step for our community, and one that families have been waiting for. We hope that families will take advantage of this opportunity as soon as possible,” said Liane Jollon, SJBPH Executive Director. “Getting more of our youth vaccinated will help ensure in-person learning is as safe as possible and protect kids in their extracurriculars, sports, and day-to-day lives.”
Parents may have been waiting for this. The children themselves, maybe not so much.
Anyway, while our local public health agencies were preparing to stick it to the children in 10-microgram doses, Fiona Havers, MD, an epidemiologist with the CDC’s Division of Viral Diseases, was touting the dangers of COVID among children to the FDA’s 19-member Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC). I will assume that Dr. Havers wants parents to be happy, and doesn’t care so much about how the children feel.
According to the University of Minnesota, Dr. Havers told the VRBPAC committee that “nearly 100 children have died from COVID-19 [since January 2020], a level similar to flu.” In the public health circles, “nearly 100” means, 94.
Following Dr. Havers testimony, the committee voted 17 in favor, with 1 abstention, that the benefits outweigh the risks of vaccination. I can imagine the committee was even more pleased about authorizing the vaccine than San Juan Basin Public Health is about actually vaccinating our children, because the committee doesn’t have to hear the kids crying.
Reportedly, during the one-year period October 2, 2002 through October 3, 2021 — a period that registered the most significant spikes in the unpleasant history of the pandemic — 66 children died of COVID-related illnesses.
During that same period, 969 children (age 5-11) died from accidents. In the public health industry, that would be “nearly 1,000”.
What we really need is a vaccine that prevents accidents.