VOA健康报道2022 美国称辉瑞疫苗似乎对5岁以下儿童有效（在线收听）

American health officials said Sunday that Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine appears to be safe and effective for children under 5. Children under 5 is the only group not yet able to be vaccinated for the coronavirus in the United States.

美国卫生官员周日表示，辉瑞的新冠疫苗似乎对5岁以下儿童安全有效。5岁以下儿童是美国唯一尚未接种新冠疫苗的人群。

The Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, shared its findings of the Pfizer shot ahead of a meeting this coming Wednesday. There, outside experts will vote on whether the shots are ready for the nation's 18 million babies and young children.

美国食品和药品管理局在本周三的会议之前分享了其对辉瑞疫苗的调查结果。在周三的会议上，外部专家将投票决定是否可以为全国1800万婴幼儿接种这种疫苗。

Late last week, the FDA published a similar study of Moderna's shots for children under 6. If health officials approve the shots by one or both companies, vaccinations could begin as soon as next week.

上周晚些时候，美国食品和药品管理局发布了一项关于为6岁以下儿童接种莫德纳疫苗的类似研究。如果卫生官员批准这任何一家或全部两家公司的疫苗，接种工作最快可能于下周开始。

Some parents have been pressing U.S. officials for months for the chance to protect their smallest children. The pressure has increased as fewer adults are now wearing face coverings or following other public health measures.

几个月来，一些父母一直在向美国官员施压，希望有机会保护他们最年幼的孩子。随着越来越少的成年人佩戴口罩或采取其它公共卫生措施，这种压力也越来越大。

In the U.S., only about 3 percent of COVID cases are in the age group of 6 months to 4 years. But the FDA found hospitalization and death rates in that group are higher than those for older children.

在美国，只有大约3%的新冠病例处于6个月到4岁这个年龄段。但是美国食品和药品管理局发现，该年龄段的住院率和死亡率高于年龄较大的儿童。

The FDA said children who received Pfizer's shots during testing developed high levels of virus-fighting antibodies expected to protect them against the coronavirus. But additional testing showed important differences, with stronger results for Pfizer.

美国食品和药品管理局表示，在测试期间接种辉瑞疫苗的儿童产生了高水平的抗病毒抗体，有望保护他们免受新冠病毒的侵害。但是额外的测试显示了重要的差异，辉瑞的结果更强。

Pfizer's vaccine is given as a three-shot treatment. It appeared 80 percent effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19, although that was based on just 10 cases found among study participants. The number could change as Pfizer's study continues.

辉瑞的疫苗是三针。它似乎在预防有症状新冠肺炎方面有80%的效果，尽管这仅基于研究参与者中发现的10例病例。随着辉瑞研究的继续，这个数字可能会发生变化。

Moderna's two-shot treatment was only about 40 percent to 50 percent effective at preventing milder infections. But the two companies' shots were tested at different times during the pandemic, when different variants were spreading. Moderna has begun testing a third shot for young children.

莫德纳的两针疫苗在预防轻度感染方面的效果只有40%到50%左右。但是这两家公司的疫苗是在大流行期间的不同时期进行测试，当时不同的变种正在传播。莫德纳已经开始对幼儿测试第三针。

On Wednesday, the FDA will ask an independent group of vaccine experts to debate both companies' data before voting. The FDA is not required to follow the group's recommendations. But the process is seen as an important step in judging the vaccines.

周三，美国食品和药品管理局将要求一个独立的疫苗专家小组在投票前对两家公司的数据进行讨论。美国食品和药品管理局无需遵循该小组的建议。但是这一过程被视为判断疫苗的重要一步。

The FDA is expected to make its official decision shortly after Wednesday's all-day meeting. The next step: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends how to use vaccines, will have its own group of experts to debate which children need vaccinations.

预计美国食品和药品管理局将在周三的全天会议后不久做出正式决定。下一步，建议如何使用疫苗的美国疾控预防中心将让自己的专家组来讨论哪些儿童需要接种疫苗。

It is not clear how much demand there will be for the shots. A recent study suggests only 1 in 5 parents of young children would get their kids vaccinated right away. And less than a third of those ages 6 to 11 have gotten the two recommended shots, official data says.

目前尚不清楚对这些疫苗会有多大需求。最近的一项研究表明，只有1/5的幼儿父母会立即让他们的孩子接种疫苗。官方数据显示，在6-11岁人群中，只有不到1/3接种了推荐的两针疫苗。

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech plan to offer two shots three weeks apart. That would be followed by a third at least two months later. The children's dose is one-tenth the amount given to adults. Pfizer is currently the only company with an approved COVID-19 vaccine for older U.S. children.

辉瑞及其合作伙伴德国生物新科技计划间隔3周时间接种两针疫苗。并且至少在两个月之后接种第三针疫苗。儿童的剂量是成人剂量的1/10。辉瑞是目前唯一一家为美国大龄儿童提供认证新冠疫苗的公司。

Moderna is seeking FDA approval for two shots, each one-fourth of its adult dose. They are given about four weeks apart.

莫德纳正在寻求美国食品和药品管理局批准其两针疫苗，每针是成人剂量的1/4。接种间隔大约是4个星期。

The FDA currently only permits Moderna's vaccine for use in adults. But some countries permit full-size doses for teenagers and half-size shots for kids ages 6 to 11. That is a step the FDA also is considering.

美国食品和药品管理局目前仅批准莫德纳疫苗用于成人。但一些国家允许青少年接种全剂量疫苗，同时6-11岁接种半剂量。这是美国食品和药品管理局正在考虑的一步。

More than 30,000 U.S. children younger than 5 have been hospitalized with COVID-19. There have also been nearly 500 coronavirus deaths in that age group, U.S. health officials say.

超过3万名5岁以下美国儿童因新冠肺炎住院。美国卫生官员表示，该年龄段有近500人死于新冠病毒。