The Omicron variant of the coronavirus does not have a negative effect on cardiovascular health in young adults who have been vaccinated, a small study suggests. Additionally, women should not delay routine mammograms after receiving a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine, experts now say.
Drugmakers Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE said on May 23 that three doses of their COVID-19 vaccine generated a strong immune response in children under age 5 and was safe and well-tolerated in their clinical trial.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration set June 14-15 as the new meeting date to review Moderna Inc.’s emergency authorization request for the company’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 6 months to 5 years and Pfizer Inc.’s vaccine for those aged 6 months through 4 years.
The U.S. Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) on May 19 said reports of heart inflammation linked to the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine have been much lower in 5- to 11-year-old boys than in adolescents and young men, representing only a slightly elevated rate than normal.
Where we are: Omicron BA.2 persists while vaccines lower risk of long COVID
B.1.1.7 "Kent" strain (United Kingdom), B.1.1.7 Variant (UK), Bebtelovimab (LY-CoV1404; LY3853113), BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), C.1.2 Covid-19 Variant (South Africa), Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, Coronavirus Vaccines, COVID-19 Antibodies, COVID-19 Deaths, COVID-19 Variant B.1.526 (New York), Covid-19 Variants, Etesevimab (Lilly), Evusheld (tixagevimab and cilgavimab; AstraZeneca), Hospitalizations, Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients, Molnupiravir, mRNA-1273/Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (Moderna), Omicron (B.1.1.529) (South Africa), Omicron BA.2, Pandemics, TherapeuticsThere appears to be a rise in COVID-19 illnesses, driven by Omicron subvariants, which may be better able to evade immunity from vaccines and previous infections and lower public health measures by the public such as masking and social distancing.
U.S. advisory panel to weigh in on COVID boosters for children
Advisory Committees, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, Coronavirus Vaccines, COVID-19 booster shots, COVID-19 shots, COVID-19 Vaccinations, COVID-19 Vaccines, FDA, Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine (J&J), mRNA-1273/Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (Moderna), Pandemics, Therapeutics, Vaccinations, Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca)An advisory panel to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is meeting on May 19 to discuss whether to recommend COVID-19 vaccine booster shots for children ages 5 to 11, a group that is just 29% vaccinated so far.
Study: mRNA vaccines perform better against COVID-19 variants of concern
AstraZeneca, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, COVID-19 Studies, COVID-19 Vaccines, Covid-19 Variants, Janssen, Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine (J&J), Johnson & Johnson, Messenger RNA (mRNA) Vaccines, Moderna, mRNA-1273/Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (Moderna), Pandemics, Peer-Reviewed Analysis, Pfizer, PLOS Medicine, R&D, SARS-CoV-2 virus, Therapeutics, Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca)In a peer-reviewed study published May 17 in PLOS Medicine, scientists found that mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines were superior to adenovirus vector-based ones across major variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
As U.S. COVID-19 cases rise, so does demand for antivirals
Antivirals, Apple, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), CDC, Connecticut, COVID-19 booster shots, COVID-19 cases, COVID-19 Therapeutics, COVID-19 Vaccines, Delaware, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), FDA, Health Officials, Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients, Maine, Massachusetts, Merck, Molnupiravir, New York, Northeast, Omicron (B.1.1.529) (South Africa), Omicron BA.2, Paxlovid, Pfizer, Regions, Reuters Tally, Rhode Island, Therapeutics, U.S. government, United States, White HouseRising COVID-19 cases are driving up the use of therapeutics, with Pfizer Inc.’s oral antiviral treatment Paxlovid seeing a 315 percent jump over the past four weeks, U.S. health officials said on May 17.
U.S. FDA authorizes Pfizer’s COVID booster shot for young children
BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Children 5-11 Years, Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, COVID-19 booster shots, COVID-19 shots, COVID-19 Vaccinations, COVID-19 Vaccines, Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), FDA, Pandemics, Pediatric, Pediatric Vaccines, Pfizer, Therapeutics, VaccinationsThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration on May 17 authorized the use of a booster shot of Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11, making everyone in the United States over the age of 5 eligible for a third shot.
FDA authorizes COVID-19 boosters for kids 5-11 as cases creep up
Antidepressants, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, Coronavirus Vaccines, COVID-19 cases, COVID-19 Deaths, COVID-19 Vaccines, Death Tolls, Fluvoxamine, Generics, Health Outcomes, Healthcare Economics Outcomes Resesarch, Pandemics, Patient Deaths, Pfizer, SARS-CoV-2 virus, TherapeuticsOn May 17, the U.S. FDA authorized a booster of Pfizer’s vaccine for kids ages 5 to 11 years. The action comes as major cities are announcing a rise in cases. Additionally, COVID-19 would have claimed over 110,000 more lives in 2021 if not for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, according to a Pfizer-sponsored report on the first year of the U.S. vaccination program.