A new pan-Canadian study will monitor the effects of illness from COVID-19, as well as the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in children and youth.
“This study will bring together information from hospitals across Canada so that we can quickly identify and respond to any emerging patterns that could be related to COVID-19 vaccination,” says the study’s B.C. site investigator Dr. Manish Sadarangani, associate professor in the faculty of medicine’s department of pediatrics and co-principal investigator of Canada’s Immunization Monitoring Program ACTive (IMPACT) network, which is conducting the study.
Dr. Manish Sadarangani
The researchers will monitor the symptoms and reactions of children and adolescents admitted to hospital due to COVID-19, including for multisystem inflammatory syndrome, and track the continued safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. The study is complemented by ongoing safety monitoring by the Public Health Agency of Canada, Health Canada, and multiple public health organizations.
“As COVID-19 vaccines are rolled out to those aged 12 to 17 and potentially younger children in the near future, we will analyze whether vaccination is associated with fewer children and youth being admitted to hospital with COVID-19 and fewer severe cases of the disease,” says Dr. Julie Bettinger, associate professor in the faculty of medicine’s department of pediatrics and IMPACT data center director and epidemiologist.
This study will build on information gathered by the research team’s Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program COVID-19 Study, which collected data from the beginning of the pandemic until the end of May 2021 to provide a more complete understanding of how COVID-19 affects children and youth.
“Children and youth have made a lot of sacrifices to help reduce the spread of COVID-19,” says Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam. “These studies on the effects of illness from COVID-19, and COVID-19 vaccine safety and effectiveness will help us learn more about the best ways to protect younger Canadians and their families. Monitoring safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in this population will also contribute to optimal COVID-19 prevention and control, population wide.”
This research is being supported by an approximately $1.8 million investment from the Government of Canada, through its COVID-19 Immunity Task Force (CITF) and Vaccine Surveillance Reference Group.
A version of this story was originally published on the BCCHRI website and CITF website.