Serge Allard, president of the Luxembourg Paediatric Society, answered numerous questions submitted by parents in an interview with our colleagues at RTL Télé Lëtzebuerg on Thursday evening.
He explained that the Grand Duchy follows the recommendations of the European Medicines Agency (EMA): children from 12 to 17 years old can be vaccinated with the Pfizer/BioNTech jab.
Currently, no other Covid-19 vaccines available on the European market are authorised for minors.
Read more: Ministry of Health: Children between 12-17 to be invited for vaccine
The EMA’s analysis, based on a US study, has clearly demonstrated that the vaccine is safe for children, according to Allard. While only 2,300 young people took part in the study, the paediatrician pointed out that this demographic also falls ill less often. Allard stressed that vaccination is recommended, explaining that “the older children get, the greater the risk of falling ill. Therefore, teenagers should also be vaccinated”.
As for the compatibility with other vaccines administered to younger children, no data is available for the moment. Allard advises caution and recommends waiting two to four weeks between the two jabs. Infectious disease specialists and virologists still need to look into the matter.
As the vaccination centres start to close down, citizens will soon be able to get vaccinated at their GP’s. Allard confirmed that this obviously also applies to paediatricians. Nevertheless, the organisation still needs to be tweaked, with the paediatrician stating that “there are all kinds of logistics to be put in place”.
Luxembourg’s paediatricians work alongside Dr Jean-Claude Schmit from the National Health Directorate and Luc Feller, who is responsible for organising the vaccination campaign in the Grand Duchy. Allard stated that he has recently been informed that it is in fact possible to store the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for a few days in a normal fridge without running the risk of degeneration, which would greatly facilitate the logistical aspect.
The President of the Luxembourg Paediatric Society concluded by stating that there are currently no plans to vaccinate children under 12 years of age against Covid-19, as studies are still ongoing and first results are only expected by the end of the year.
In May, RTL Today interviewed Allard, who provided further detail on the pros and cons of vaccinating young people.
