• Question: when we make a vaccine for COVID-19 will it just be for adults or will it be for children as well if it is introduced?

    Asked by anon-251536 to William on 29 Apr 2020.
    • Photo: William Glass

      William Glass answered on 29 Apr 2020:

      Hi! That’s a very good question but I’m not sure there is a clear answer. The situation is still pretty fluid and changes most days. I imagine that when we develop a vaccine it may be prioritised for the most vunerable in society and frontline workers, since these will be people that are most at risk from infection. At the time of writing it seems that COVID19 doesn’t cause the same response in children as it does in adults and we are still trying to understand exactly why. Sorry I can’t answer that more concretely, but rest assured that scientists are working 24/7 across the world to understand more about the virus and how we can develop an effective vaccine!

Comments

  • Photo: Melanie

    Melanie commented on :

    Its true that the virus might cause a different reaction in children.. so the way the disease manifests is different. But a vaccine does not affect how the disease builds up as it works before that even happens. It trains the immune system to fight off the very initial infection. As such I think its most likely that the vaccine will be given to people of all ages except maybe very young babies (like with most vaccines).
    However, there will probably a delay in when children will get the vaccine. Because so many people across the world will need the vaccine, many countries are now thinking about who to vaccinate first. And it seems most politicians think healthcare workers and vulnerable people should be the first ones to get the vaccine.

  • modmia commented on :

    IMPORTANT: This question and its answers are about coronavirus (COVID-19). The information on this page might be out of date or wrong.

    For up-to-date health information and advice, please go to the NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

  • Photo: Wei

    Wei commented on :

    Hi, what we currently know about SARs-COV-2 is that it is most dangerous for people who are older (age ~65+) and those with underlying health conditions.
    I would expect the distribution of the vaccine (once we have one) will be similar to the seasonal flu vaccine, where priorities would be given to people who have higher risk of infection and those who are more likely to suffer more serious health consequences from it. These groups do include children NHS website says: (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/who-should-have-flu-vaccine/ )

    * children over the age of 6 months with a long-term health condition
    * children aged 2 and 3 years on 31 August 2019 (that is, born between 1 September 2015 and 31 August 2017)
    * children in primary school