Pfizer COVID vaccine cut Omicron hospitalisations by 68 percent in kids aged 5-11

The study included 1,185 children with Covid at 31 paediatric hospitals across the US: 918 adolescents aged 12 to 18 and 267 children aged 5 to 11. The team also enrolled patients of similar age who were hospitalised for other reasons and served as controls.

Among children 5-11 hospitalised with Covid, 92 per cent were unvaccinated, and among 16 per cent who were critically ill, needing life support measures such as intubation, 90 per cent were unvaccinated. On the other hand, two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine prevented hospitalisation in 68 per cent during Omicron.

Among adolescents aged 12-18 hospitalised with Covid-19, 87 per cent were unvaccinated. Twenty-seven per cent had critical illness, and of these, 93 per cent were unvaccinated. While two children died, vaccination was 96 per cent effective in preventing critical illness during the Delta period and 79 per cent during the Omicron wave.

"We hope our findings will help parents make the decision to vaccinate their children and teenagers against Covid-19," Randolph said. "The benefits clearly outweigh the risks, as severe infections in childhood can have long-term consequences."

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