Skip to main content
Mayo Clinic Health System
  • Patient Online Services
  • Pay Bill Online
  • Request an Appointment
    • Services
    • Providers
    • Locations

      Minnesota

      • Adams
      • Albert Lea
      • Austin
      • Belle Plaine
      • Blooming Prairie
      • Butterfield
      • Caledonia
      • Cannon Falls
      • Fairmont
      • Faribault
      • Janesville
      • Kenyon
      • Lake City
      • Le Sueur
      • Mankato
      • Montgomery
      • New Prague
      • New Richland
      • Northfield
      • Owatonna
      • Plainview
      • Red Wing
      • Sherburn
      • St. James
      • St. Peter
      • Waseca
      • Waterville
      • Wells
      • Zumbrota

      Wisconsin

      • Arcadia
      • Barron
      • Bloomer
      • Chetek
      • Chippewa Falls
      • Eau Claire
      • Ellsworth
      • Glenwood City
      • Holmen
      • La Crosse
      • Menomonie
      • Mondovi
      • Onalaska
      • Osseo
      • Prairie du Chien
      • Rice Lake
      • Sparta
      • Tomah

      Iowa

      • Decorah
      • Lake Mills

      View map
    • Classes/Events
    • Blog
    • Wellness
    • Referrals
    • COVID-19
    • Influenza

    Recent Posts

    • Parent examining child's back
      Speaking of Health
      Uncomfortable skin conditions in kids: Eczema, psoriasis
      February 03, 2023
    • Two people talking indoors
      Speaking of Health
      Weigh benefits, risks carefully before taking off-label medication
      February 03, 2023
    • Looking in mirror closeup
      Transforming Health Care
      Health disparities in preventive screenings for African Americans
      February 02, 2023
    Featured Topics
    • Behavioral Health
    • Cancer
    • Children's Health (Pediatrics)
    • COVID-19
    • COVID-19 Vaccine
    • Exercise and Fitness
    • Heart Health
    • Men's Health
    • Neurosurgery
    • Obstetrics and Gynecology
    • Orthopedic Health
    • Weight Loss and Bariatric Surgery
    • Women's Health
    Join our email newsletter
    Featured Topic
    Thursday, November 11, 2021

    Safety, side effects of COVID-19 vaccination for kids

    Topics in this Post
    • COVID-19 Vaccine
    • COVID-19
    • Pediatric Medicine
    • Children's Health (Pediatrics)
    • Hot topics
    Child prepped for vaccination

    With 28 million more children in the U.S. now eligible to be vaccinated for COVID-19, parents of kids 5–11 may still have questions about the vaccine and if it's safe for younger children. Tina Ardon, M.D., a Mayo Clinic Family Medicine physician, says that it is safe to vaccinate children 5–11 for COVID-19.

    "The COVID-19 vaccine is extremely safe for our children. We have a number of studies that represent that we've had a number of children already received the vaccines, and we have been able to monitor those children closely. And we feel very confident this is a safe and effective vaccine," says Dr. Ardon.

    Dr. Ardon, who is a mother of young children herself, says it's understandable that some parents may be wary of a vaccine that's been developed in a relatively short period of time, but they should not feel that it's any less safe because of that.

    "I think it's important to remember we had a wealth of information about mRNA vaccines already under our belt before the pandemic started. So this helped speed up a lot of that initial research," she says. "This is an example as well of how we get everybody, all hands on deck, everyone working as hard as they can to get a really important vaccine available for our patients. A lot of the bureaucratic red tape, some of the timelines that we normally see were just eliminated because we knew this was so important. The parts of the process that are truly important not to cut corners were certainly done exactly the way they needed to be. The timelines to administer the vaccines, to follow the side effects afterward, to analyze that data ― all that was done extremely appropriately. There were no corners cut."

    She says the COVID-19 vaccines are similar to other childhood vaccinations regarding how they are administered and the potential side effects.

    "The COVID-19 vaccines, in a lot of ways, are no different than the other vaccines we have available. They're administered in the same way, either in the arm or in the leg, depending on the age of the child. The doses are appropriate for the age of the child, as well. There's no special follow-up that has to happen after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. And the side effects are quite similar to other vaccines, including fever, muscle aches — but most likely pain, redness and swelling at the injection site," says Dr. Ardon.

    A common question asked by parents is whether the risk of getting vaccinated for COVID-19 is higher than the risk of children getting infected with COVID-19.

    "Because the vaccine is extremely safe, extremely effective, we do feel that the benefit greatly outweighs any potential risks of the vaccine, which really, there are very minimal risks, if any. And the ones that we have noticed are things that we can take care of in the outpatient setting very easily," says Dr. Ardon. "The risks of our patients actually getting COVID-19 are quite significant. We see things like inflammation of the heart, chronic lung problems. Patients may need to be hospitalized, and even can die from COVID-19 infection."

    Information in this post was accurate at the time of its posting. Due to the fluid nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, scientific understanding, along with guidelines and recommendations, may have changed since the original publication date.


    For the safety of our patients, staff and visitors, Mayo Clinic has strict masking policies in place. Anyone shown without a mask was either recorded prior to COVID-19 or recorded in a non-patient care area where social distancing and other safety protocols were followed.
    Topics in this Post
    • COVID-19 Vaccine
    • COVID-19
    • Pediatric Medicine
    • Children's Health (Pediatrics)
    • Hot topics

    Related Posts

    Kids roasting marshmallows on fire What to know about youth summer camps during COVID-19
    Kids and parents doing homework and looking at a cellphone COVID-19 booster vaccinations extended to kids 5–11
    Child with arm around parent shoulder Helping kids struggling with the ever-changing COVID-19 pandemic

    Stay Connected

    • Contact Us
    • Notice of Nondiscrimination
    • Notice of Privacy Practices
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • About Us
    • Careers
    • Volunteer
    • Donate
    • For Patients & Visitors
    • Financial Assistance
    • Community Resources
    • Mayo Clinic Connect
    • For Medical Professionals
    • Press Room
    • Mayo Clinic
    • Home
    © 2018 - 2023 Mayo Clinic Health System