The Pfizer / BioNTech alliance submitted Monday, October 18, an authorization request to Health Canada for the use of its vaccine against Covid-19 in children aged 5 to 11, pharmaceutical companies and the Canadian government said.
“This is the first request that Health Canada has received for the use of a vaccine against Covid-19 in this age group
,
”
the Ministry of Health said
in a press
release.
Read alsoCovid-19: still many questions about the vaccination of children under 12
The authorization request is based on data from trials carried out on 2,268 children in this age group for whom the dosage was lowered to 10 micrograms per injection (three times less than the standard dose), which represents, according to the company,
"the preferable dose"
for 5 to 11 year olds. This same Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is approved in Canada for ages 12 and up.
Health Canada assures that it will only authorize the use of the vaccine
"if the independent and thorough scientific review of all the data submitted confirms that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks"
with this group.
The Canadian ministry also indicated that
"other manufacturers are also testing their vaccines on children of different age groups
.
"
Earlier this month, Pfizer Laboratories and BioNTech made the same request for 5-11 year olds in the United States.
Read alsoVaccinating children against Covid, good or bad idea?
Childhood immunizations are raising questions around the world.
Many countries vaccinate adolescents from the age of 12, but very few do so below that age.
In recent months, the World Health Organization (WHO) has insisted that the urgency is to immunize the population of poor countries before children and adolescents in rich countries.
