Unlike many medications, COVID-19 vaccine dosage does not vary by patient weight but by age on the day of vaccination.There is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines cause fertility problems.Learn more about how mRNA vaccines, like the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, work. Your child cannot get COVID-19 from any COVID-19 vaccine, including the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.A severe allergic reaction, like anaphylaxis, may happen after any vaccine, including COVID-19 vaccines, but this is rare.During clinical trials, no cases of myocarditis occurred in children ages 5 through 11 years who received the COVID-19 vaccine. In general, adolescents ages 12 through 17 years have a higher risk for myocarditis than children ages 5 through 11 years.These reactions are rare in one study, the risk of myocarditis after the second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech in the week following vaccination was around 54 cases per million doses administered to males ages 12–17 years. Cases of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and pericarditis (inflammation of the outer lining of the heart) have been reported after Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccination of children ages 12–17 years.Serious health events after COVID-19 vaccination are rare.Your child may get a COVID-19 vaccine and other vaccines, including flu vaccine, at the same time.CDC monitors the safety of all COVID-19 vaccines after the vaccines are authorized or approved for use, including the risk of myocarditis in children ages 5 through 11 years.
Get a COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 years and older as soon as you can.ĬOVID-19 vaccines are being monitored for safety with the most comprehensive and intense safety monitoring program in U.S. The benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the known and potential risks. Learn more about the process of developing, authorizing, and approving COVID-19 vaccines.
The FDA gave the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine emergency authorization to use in children ages 5-15 years old and full approval to use in people ages 16 years and older. Help protect your whole family and slow the spread of COVID-19 in your community by getting yourself and your children ages 5 years and older vaccinated against COVID-19.īefore recommending COVID-19 vaccination for children, scientists conducted clinical trials with thousands of children and no serious safety concerns were identified.
Have both short and long-term health complications from COVID-19.In some situations, the complications from infection can lead to death.Ĭhildren are as likely to be infected with COVID-19 as adults and can COVID-19 can make children very sick and cause children to be hospitalized. There are approximately 28 million children between the ages of 5 and 11 years old in the United States, and there have been nearly 2 million cases of COVID-19 within this age group during the pandemic.