Children over 12 and adolescents and adults under 30 to be vaccinated only with biontech/pfizer’s corona vaccine in future, not moderna’s, according to standing vaccination commission (stiko).
Recent reporting analyses showed that myocardial and pericardial inflammation was observed more frequently in this age group after moderna vaccination (spikevax) than after biontech vaccination (comirnaty). This was announced by the stiko on wednesday.
No final recommendation yet
"This recommendation applies to both basic immunization and possible booster vaccinations."Even if another vaccine has been used before, biontech should be used for further vaccinations, it said. The expert panel relied on safety data from the paul ehrlich institute (PEI) and international data. Stiko also advised that pregnant women should receive biontech regardless of age, even though comparative safety data on the two vaccines are not yet available for them.
It is not yet a final stiko recommendation. The draft decision on the corresponding update of the covid 19 vaccine recommendation has been sent to experts and countries for voting, it said. Changes are therefore still possible.
The course of myocardial and pericardial inflammation has been "predominantly mild" according to safety reports available to date, the stiko explained. As the PEI states in its safety report, the inflammations occurred particularly after the second vaccination. First symptoms were typically noticed within a few days of the prick. Stiko stressed that people over 30 are not at increased risk of either inflammation after receiving the moderna vaccine.
The vaccines from biontech/pfizer and the U.S. Manufacturer moderna are similar in some respects: they are both mrna vaccines, and two doses are administered for basic immunization. Since the introduction of both vaccines, it has been known that "in rare cases" they can cause myocardial and/or pericardial inflammation in younger people, the stiko writes. Chairman thomas mertens told dpa on wednesday that the hypothesis is that the more frequently recorded cases with the moderna vaccine could be related to its comparatively higher mrna dosage.
The PEI safety report lists 136 reports of myocardial and pericardial inflammation in moderna-vaccinated people between 18 and 29 years of age. Two reports involve 12- to 17-year-olds. Per 100,000 moderna vaccinations are reported to be 11.41 and 11.71 respectively for the two age groups.
France’s top health authority also advises people under 30 against moderna for the same reasons, according to a recommendation issued by the authority on monday evening. Moderna announced on tuesday that it had applied to the european medicines agency (ema) for marketing authorization for children between the ages of six and eleven. There is still no approved vaccine in europe for children under 12 years of age.