But what about the keiki?!
Only recently (October-November) has Pfizer started enrolling children as young as 12 years old in their studies. Moderna is planning to do the same. The data for this age group may take a while before we understand the efficacy of the vaccine for children. Eventually, studies will include those even younger but that also takes time. Small doses, careful observation. This is a must. The right data needs to be produced before considering the vaccine safe in these age groups. As this can take time, the American Academy of Pediatrics is pushing for children to be included in the vaccine trials so that we may know sooner rather than later whether the vaccine is safe.
Going back to herd immunity, how much of the population needs to be vaccinated?
This is hard to predict, but in an article by Omer et al., they predicted that approximately 50-67% of the population would need to be vaccinated. Others are saying 70%. There’s still so much to learn about this virus!
Omer SB, Yildirim I, Forman HP. Herd Immunity and Implications for SARS-CoV-2 Control. JAMA. 2020;324(20):2095–2096. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.20892
How long will I be immune once I receive the vaccine?
We still don’t know that information. But with time, research will help guide us! We’re not sure if repeat immunization will be needed or if this first series of vaccination will be sufficient.
So, in a nut shell, vaccines are important to us because it protects us against dangerous diseases. There’s still a lot we didn’t discuss in this newsletter such as what to look out for after vaccination, when is vaccination not appropriate, which diseases need additional types of vaccinations, etc. COVID-19 vaccination has very promising data but unfortunately, not much with children…yet.
As always, call or message us if you have a question regarding vaccination and your keiki. We are here for you.
Love,
Your Keānuenue ‘Ohana |