The
incidence of
coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19), including severe cases, has been increasing in both
children and
adolescents with the spread of the
delta variant.
COVID-19 vaccines have been identified to be effective in the prevention of COVID-19transmission in
children and
adolescents and keeping
schools open. However, adverse reactions associated with COVID-19
vaccination in
children and
adolescents contribute to
parents’ hesitation to proceed with
vaccination, especially due to serious, albeit rare, reactions. The results from
COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials on the
safety and
efficacy of
COVID-19 vaccines in
children and
adolescents are promising in terms of their effects on COVID-19
infection prevention. In the present study, we summarize the adverse reactions of
COVID-19 vaccines in
children and
adolescents, based on the clinical trials, mainly including Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna
COVID-19 vaccines. In the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 clinical trials, the most common local adverse reaction was
pain at the
injection site in 74.1%–86%, depending on age, and the most common systemic adverse reaction was
fatigue, followed by
headache,
myalgia,
diarrhea, and
fever with differences in the distribution according to age. There was no severe adverse reaction related to any
COVID-19 vaccine in
children and
adolescents during the study period. In the
mass vaccination program of COVID-19 in
children and
adolescent,
myocarditis has rarely been diagnosed after COVID-19
vaccination, which most commonly occurred in
boys after the second
dose. Currently, Pfizer-BioNTech
COVID-19 vaccines can be safely recommended in
children and
adolescents for the prevention of COVID-19
infection and the reduction in COVID-19 severity.