Risk of COVID-19 in Children throughout the Pandemic and the Role of Vaccination: A Narrative Review.

At the beginning of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, persons ≥65 years of age and healthcare personnel represented the most vulnerable groups with respect to risk of infection, severe illness, and death. However, as the pandemic progressed, there was an increasingly detrimental effect on young children and adolescents. Severe disease and hospitalization increased over time in pediatric populations, and containment measures created substantial psychosocial, educational, and economic challenges for young people. Vaccination of children against COVID-19 has been shown to reduce severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections and severe outcomes in pediatric populations and may also help to prevent the spread of variants of concern and improve community immunity. This review discusses the burden of COVID-19 on children throughout the pandemic, the role of children in disease transmission, and the impact of COVID-19 vaccination.
Competing Interests: D.J.W. has received consulting fees from Pfizer, Germitac, PDI, and BD in relation to vaccines and disinfection products, was a member of a Data Safety Monitoring Board/Advisory Board at GlaxoSmithKline, and is a member on the board at Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA). K.O.Z. receives salary support from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) through Duke University, has received an honorarium from Pediatric Grand Rounds (Ohio State University) and for an NMA COVID-19 report on provider perspectives, and is on the membership committee for USP. S.Y.T. has received grants from Pfizer Inc., paid directly to the institution, for work unrelated to this manuscript. J.M.M. is an employee and holds stock options at Pfizer Inc. S.P. is an employee of BioNTech SE.