A preprint of an FDA study investigated the risk of febrile seizures following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination in children ages 2 to 5. The study found a slight increase in risk the day after the Moderna vaccination compared to the control period of eight to 63 days after vaccination. Vaccine opponents are circulating the study as proof that the vaccines are not safe for young children.
Prebunking talking points may emphasize that numerous studies, including the FDA study in question, have found COVID-19 vaccines to be safe for young children with an extremely low risk of serious side effects. Additionally, COVID-19 infection has been shown to significantly increase febrile seizure risk in children. Messaging may explain that the FDA study didn’t compare risk in unvaccinated and vaccinated children. It compared seizure risk only in the period immediately after and several weeks after vaccination. Messaging may also emphasize that the study found the overall risk of febrile seizures to be quite low—not unlike other vaccines—and concluded that “the safety profile of the monovalent mRNA vaccines remains favorable for use in young children.”
