Pandemic is forcing parents to worry about uncertain new school year

Parents, caregivers, children: we just don’t know.

High case rates, new variants, negotiations with teachers’ unions and elaborate and costly protocols for reopening safe schools make it difficult for our children to return to pre-pandemic lives.

Experts agree that a widely available pediatric vaccine would simplify the process, but we don’t know when we can expect it and whether it is needed for a safe return.

The state of research on children

Now that Covid-19 vaccines have been shown to be safe and effective in adults, pharmaceutical companies have started to study these same vaccines in children. Researchers are currently focusing on adolescents and tweens with the intention, over time, to find their way into younger children, as older children have been shown to be safe in clinical trials.

“From an ethical standpoint, you don’t want to start studying a drug in vulnerable populations like children and pregnant women until you have proven safety and effectiveness in the adult population,” explained Dr. Larry Kociolek, pediatric infectious disease specialist and physician director of infection prevention and control at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago.

Children over 16 have been included in trials with adults, and the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is now approved for ages 16 and over. (The Moderna vaccine is approved for adults aged 18 and over.) Their vaccinations are a matter of vaccine availability – which is yet another point of uncertainty.

Children between the ages of 12 and 17 are currently being studied, although the timeline for releasing these results remains unclear. Children under 12 have yet to be studied, but things are moving fast.

“There are no open American studies looking at these age groups, and the exact timing for starting studies in young children is not available,” said Dr. Evan Anderson, professor of pediatrics at Emory University and physician at Children’s Healthcare in Atlanta. .

Older teens could get the fall shot

If you have a 16-year-old at home, there’s a good chance they’ll be vaccinated in time for back to school this fall, experts say. But it’s increasingly doubtful that the vaccination – and the second follow-up vaccine – will take place in time for summer camp.

Next up are 12 years old and have a good chance of seeing a vaccine in time for the next school year, which would make them more likely to return to school.

Do you have children aged 12 and under? Don’t count on a vaccine in time for fall.

“It is possible that this age group will be eligible as early as late summer or early fall, but that may be optimistic. But even if they are, it will take several months or more to distribute widely. the vaccine, ”Kociolek said.

Anderson believes it’s still possible to get a vaccine to elementary school students in time for the next school year, “but that window is closing quickly.”

Herd immunity and reopening of schools

Good. No holding our breath for vaccines for 12 and under in time for the next school year. But what impact does this have on this age group who may be going back to school next year?

Widespread vaccination and herd immunity would eliminate much of the risk, even if schools cannot follow these protocols. Is adult vaccination sufficient to achieve immunity and minimize risk? Or is it dangerous until children are vaccinated?

On this point, the experts are divided.

A widely distributed pediatric vaccine should be a priority, Anderson believes.

“In order for us to get out of pandemic mode completely, we need to make sure that our children can and do receive a vaccine,” he explained. “Otherwise, you have a continuous reservoir of children who are susceptible to Covid-19. We are likely to see sustained transmission among young children and the virus leaping from that group to other populations or unvaccinated individuals.”

He is concerned that children may give it to immunocompromised adults who may not respond to the vaccine. He also fears that the children themselves will fall ill; while Covid-19 is much less dangerous for children, it is not without risk. The number of children who died from Covid-19 last year amounted to a particularly deadly flu season. “We get them vaccinated against the flu,” he says.

Will vaccinated adults reduce the risk of children?

Other experts want to stress that the likelihood of children contracting Covid-19 will drop dramatically when adults are vaccinated.

“When it comes to Covid-19 in children, the highest risk of exposure for children comes from those who care for them at home,” Kociolek explained. “We know that if we vaccinate parents against pertussis (pertussis), for example, it can prevent it in infants. We call it cocooning, and it’s a way to protect children by creating a web of immunity.

If you factor in all the people who have already contracted the coronavirus and combine that factor with those who are likely to get vaccinated in the next six months, it seems likely that we will get herd immunity without a pediatric vaccine, the Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center and professor of pediatrics in the division of infectious diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

“You probably don’t need to immunize children to stop the spread,” he said.

For now, educators are not sure. Some are already calling for the vaccination of teachers and students before they return to work. Many more are waiting to follow the lead of scientists and public health officials.

Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, said it was possible that a safe reopening for all would involve a vaccine for children, “but we don’t have the science on that yet. I’m a teacher. science and I know so we have to listen to the professionals on this. We are not making any statements yet. “

Living in uncertainty

“What I’m telling you (end of January) may not be accurate very soon given how fast this is moving,” Kociolek said. This is a sentiment shared by many of his medical colleagues. There are so many unknowns, so many variables, and they are all subject to change. Which brings us back to more uncertainty.

There is some relief in accepting the uncertainty and ending the speculation. It reminds us to only make plans that can easily be broken and to avoid relying on anything that would break our children’s hearts if it were to be canceled.

I hesitate to suggest this is an opportunity to teach children about uncertainty, as I’m not sure our kids need more lessons from this furshlugginer pandemic (Yiddish for “piece of junk”) , as my firstborn now calls him. At this point, the children are probably all lost.

Children do appreciate honesty, however. Tell older children you don’t know if they’re going back to school this spring. If they’re younger, tell them you don’t know if they’ll be camping or going back to school next fall.

Tell them that a lot of good, hard-working people are doing everything they can to make this happen as quickly as possible. Will they succeed? Finally, yes. We just don’t know when.