[UPDATED] Sinovac for kids, Paxlovid receive conditional approval

KUALA LUMPUR – Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccine for children aged between five and 11 has been given conditional approval for use in Malaysia.

In a statement, Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said this will be the second vaccine approved for children by the Malaysian Drug Control Authority (DCA), apart from the Pfizer-BioNTech jab.

Sinovac has previously been approved for the national immunisation programme for adolescents.

The waiting period for dose one and two of the Sinovac kids’ jab is 28 days.

The CoronaVac jab is manufactured by Sinovac Life Sciences Co Ltd, China and Pharmaniaga Lifescience Sdn Bhd.

Pfizer-BioNTech received approval on January 6 for its vaccine for kids, where they are given 10mcg, which is a third of the dose given to those aged 12 and above.

Meanwhile, the DCA also issued conditional approvals for Pfizer’s Covid-19 medication – Paxlovid (PF-07321332 150mg film-coated tablets and Ritonavir 100mg film-coated tablets).

The licence holder of the Paxlovid medication is Pfizer (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, while the manufacturers are Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland GmbH in Germany and Pfizer Ireland Pharmaceuticals.

It is recommended for use in treating Covid-19 in patients aged 18 and above who do not require oxygen therapy and are at high risk for severe symptoms.

However, Noor Hisham said Paxlovid is not meant to be a replacement for Covid-19 vaccines and adherence to health SOPs.

Paxlovid was approved by the US FDA in December for the treatment of mild-to-moderate Covid-19 in adults and those aged 12 and above.

It consists of nirmatrelvir, which inhibits a SARS-CoV-2 protein to stop the virus from replicating, and ritonavir, which slows down nirmatrelvir’s breakdown to help it remain in the body for a longer period at higher concentrations. – The Vibes, March 3, 2022