DUBAI: Gulf state Bahrain has granted emergency approval for the use of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine to inoculate children ages 5-11, the government media office announced on Tuesday.
The decision came after a study involving 3,100 children aged between 5 and 11 who were administered with the vaccine found it to be 90.7% effective in that age group, the media office said, citing the National Health Regulatory Authority.
The government of the Gulf state said it will be supplied with children-sized doses of the vaccine from the start of 2022, Reuters reported. Last week Bahrain approved the use of China’s Sinopharm vaccine for children aged between 3 and 11.
“The national team noted that this age group was allowed to receive the vaccination after the committee studied all the medical recommendations issued in this regard in order to preserve their health and safety by acquiring immunity against the virus,” the Bahrain News Agency reported.
A parent or guardian’s consent is required for children to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, the news agency reported. They must also be accompanied by an adult while receiving the vaccine.
The US Food and Drug Administration cleared kid-sized doses of the Pfizer vaccine for emergency use last week. Children will get just a third of the amount given to teens and adults, and up to 28 million more American children could be eligible for vaccinations as early as this week.
A few countries have begun using other COVID-19 vaccines in children under 12, including China, which just began vaccinations for 3-year-olds. However, many that use the vaccine made by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech are watching the US decision, and European regulators just began considering the companies’ kid-size doses.
