Singapore — Janil Puthucheary and Ong Ye Kung recently highlighted the importance of getting children from the ages of five to 11 vaccinated against Covid-19, and sought to reassure parents that among the children who have received the jabs so far, there have been no reported incidents of serious side effects.
Since paediatric vaccinations for Covid-19 began last month, around 123,000 children have received at least one dose of the vaccine or have scheduled an appointment for the jab.
In Parliament on Jan 10 (Monday), Dr Janil Puthucheary, Senior Minister of State for Health, said that there is a risk that children could develop severe complications if they test positive for Covid-19.
He cited “several” cases where children were admitted to intensive care units.
“This is why it’s important for children… to take up the Covid-19 vaccination. Vaccination will allow children to be protected against the disease and reduce the likelihood of infecting others, including the vulnerable and other elderly family members,” he said.
The children who have undergone the vaccine jab have only experienced mild effects including site pain, fatigue and fever, which went away after a few days.
More importantly, there have been no reports of children developing myocarditis or heart inflammation, which has been a concern some parents voiced out, he added.
In the same vein, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung warned about the Omicron variant’s high rate of transmission, and added, “we do not want to rule out that even a small percentage of children can get very sick. We might be looking at a significant absolute number.”
The South China Morning Post reported that Mr Ong acknowledged some parents’ fears over possible side effects from mRNA vaccines, but said that extensive clinical trials have shown they are safe and effective.
“Given the circumstances, costs and benefits, I think the right thing to do now is to get your child vaccinated as quickly as possible,” SCMP quotes Mr Ong as saying.
The United States has recently seen its highest levels of children hospitalised for Covid-19 due to the Omicron variant, especially for children under the age of four, who are still ineligible for the vaccine.
Some doctors even consider it to be a variant of concern for children because Omicron appears to target the upper respiratory tract, and causes the airways, which are narrower in children, to swell. Children who experience this end up with a bark-like cough known as croup. /TISG