Arab News, Wednesday, Aug11, 2021 | Muharram 3, 1443

UAE COVID-19 trial: Almost all children had virus antibodies after Sinopharm vaccine

A COVID-19 trial among adolescents in the United Arab Emirates showed almost all children who received two doses of the Chinese-made Sinopharm vaccine generated antibodies against the deadly virus, health officials have said.

The country’s National Crisis and Emergency Management Authority (NCEMA) announced the results of the trial on 900 children during a press briefing on Tuesday. Some members of Abu Dhabi’s ruling family participated in the trial.

It found that 96.6 percent of children vaccinated with Sinopharm generated a good level of antibodies, while only a minor number of youngsters who received the dose experienced side effects from the vaccine.

These minor symptoms were similar to those experienced with other childhood inoculations such as polio vaccines, the health body said.

Among the total vaccinated children, 29.7 percent experienced pain in the place of injection, eight percent experienced headaches and 3.7 percent experienced fever or high temperature.

These symptoms and side effects normally faded very quickly, the trial found.

“Vaccine safety is considered high for children between three to 17-years-old, as there have been no positive cases for children who have received the vaccine,” NCEMA said.

It was also announced on Tuesday that the UAE’s main contact tracing app - the Al Hosn app – has been revamped with new features.

This includes a new display showing if someone has been vaccinated and had a recent PCR test.

Tourists and new residents who were vaccinated against COVID-19 abroad will also be able to upload their vaccine certificates from August 15.

NCEMA announced Tuesday that the UAE had recorded 1,334 new cases of COVID-19, 1,396 new recoveries and four virus-related deaths in the previous 24 hours.

A total of 695,619 cases of COVID-19 have now been recorded in the UAE.