A new study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveals that children who received the original COVID-19 vaccine have limited protection against hospitalization and critical illness just a few months after vaccination.
The study found that initially, children had 52% protection against hospitalization, but after four months, that effectiveness dropped to 19%. Protection against critical illness also decreased from 57% to 25%. The study included children aged 5 to 18 who received two or more doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines between December 2021 and October 2023.
The research drew data from the Overcoming COVID-19 Network and involved 1,551 case patients and 1,797 in the control group. The results highlight the CDC’s recommendation for children aged 6 months and older to receive one of the newest COVID-19 vaccines.
However, the study did not provide data on whether the currently available shots provide longer-lasting protection than the original vaccines. The study’s limitations include not assessing post-infection immunity and a lack of sequencing data.
As authorities are shifting to an annual COVID-19 vaccine model, updating the formulation of the vaccines each year, only a small percentage of children and adults have received one of the newest