Canada Vaccination
Health Canada approves Pfizer vaccine in adolescents in ages 12 to 15
Ottawa/IBNS: Health Canada Wednesday approved the Pfizer vaccine for use in adolescents in ages 12 to 15 after Canadian Health regulators reviewed clinical trial data submitted by the New York-based company last month.
About 2,000 adolescents between the ages of 12 to 15 were enrolled by Pfizer in its U.S.-based trial, giving half that group a placebo and the other cohort the same vaccine that is used in adults.
None of the adolescent recipients in the clinical trial of the Pfizer vaccine developed symptomatic infections indicating significant protection. In the group that did not receive the vaccine, there were 18 cases of COVID-19.
Calling this authorization a significant milestone in Canada's fight against the pandemic, Supriya Sharma, the chief medical adviser at Health Canada said that the vaccinated adolescents also produced strong antibody responses and experienced roughly the same temporary side effects seen in people ages 16 to 25 such a sore arm, chills or fever
She also said that move would facilitate young people to safely return to school and extracurricular activities.
Pfizer is the first product to be approved in Canada for use in this younger age category, the other three AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna can only be used in people over the age of 18, for now.
(Reporting by Asha Bajaj)
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