The program to administer COVID-19 vaccinations to children has been paused in Thanh Hoa and Hanoi due to safety concerns. As reported by TrialSite, health regulators in Vietnam's south-eastern provinces have stopped the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine after more than 120 children were hospitalised following a school-wide vaccination. TrialSite also recently reported that a 15-year-old boy from Vietnam’s northern province died, the fourth paediatric death linked to the COVID-19 vaccine. TrialSite’s Southeast Asia correspondents investigate further.
Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are approved for use on children by the Vietnamese government. Children are divided into three age groups for vaccination: 3-11, 12-15, and 16-17 years old. The Ministry of Health predicted that by the fourth quarter of 2021, 95% of the 8.1 million youngsters aged 12 to 17 would have had two COVID-19 vaccine doses.
Vaccination Halted in Hanoi
A girl in Hanoi's Thuong Tin District died only one day after vaccination in November. The cause of death was Grade IV anaphylaxis, according to the Post-Vaccination Events Expert Panel. Anaphylaxis is a set of symptoms caused by an allergic re...