This past weekend, Helsinki and Turku made Covid vaccines available for children aged 5 to 11 in risk groups as classified by the Finnish institute for health and welfare (THL).

Kids who are obese or have chronic illnesses are considered at risk of developing serious complications if they contract coronavirus.

The rest of the kids in this age group will still have to wait for their jabs.

THL's chief physician, Hanna Nohynek, told Yle it's up to the government to rule when vaccinations will expand to include all 5-11 year-olds.

According to Nohynek, children rarely develop serious complications from Covid. Finland does not outright recommend coronavirus vaccines for kids, except for those who are in risk groups or live with family members deemed to be at risk.

Children's doses are 10 microgrammes, a third of 30-microgramme adult versions of the vaccine.

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Pros and cons

The benefit of vaccinating at-risk kids against developing severe forms of Covid outweighs any potential risks, according to the THL chief physician.

But when it comes to a healthy child, the balance of pros and cons is not immediately clear, Nokynek added.

"We want to be absolutely certain that the vaccine doesn't cause more harm than good. The question is whether Covid vaccination is safe enough for children of this age who very rarely develop serious Covid complications," she noted.

"One issue under consideration has been heart inflammation, which has been seen in some older kids and young adults, particularly in men under 30. We want to be sure to understand the incidence rates for heart issues in 5-11 year-old kids."

She noted that vaccination data from the US covering seven million administered doses, showed the ratio of heart inflammation cases was one in a million. While this would indicate a miniscule risk, THL for the moment only recommends vaccinating kids in risk groups.

Clinical studies have shown that the vaccine is 90 percent effective in shielding children from even mild forms of the illness.

Younger kids' side effects have been the same as those reported among those over 12, such as pain at the injection site, fever and muscle soreness lasting a few days.

Nohynek said paediatricians in Finland are not uniformly enthusiastic about vaccinating kids who very rarely develop severe forms of Covid.

THL's modelling meanwhile suggests that young kids do not play as large of a role in starting and maintaining infection chains as teens and young adults.

But Nohynek notes that countries arrive at their own conclusions when it comes to vaccinating their youngest residents. Denmark is aiming to vaccinate all kids over the age of five by Christmas. Danish officials argue that vaccinating children indirectly protects other age groups.

However, Sweden and Norway have not shared Denmark's eagerness to vaccinate children. Sweden is not set to begin vaccinating children in risk groups until after the New Year.