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By Neha Mathur Sep 20 2023 Reviewed by Lily Ramsey, LLM

In a recent article published in Jama Network Open, researchers estimated the association between receipt of BNT162b2 vaccine and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related ambulatory visits in United States (US) children below the age of five years.

Study:  Receipt of BNT162b2 Vaccine and COVID-19 Ambulatory Visits in US Children Younger Than 5 Years. Image Credit: Ground Picture/Shutterstock.com Background

In the US, messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) technology-based COVID-19 vaccines based on wildtype severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) strain became available for young children from June 18, 2022, onward. However, vaccine uptake was low, and <5% of US children completed a primary SARS-CoV-2 vaccination series by May 24, 2023.

A previous study that examined COVID-19 vaccination and disease outcomes among children younger than five years did not include children younger than three years. About the study

In the present study, researchers included children aged six months to four years diagnosed with an acute respiratory infection and tested for COVID-19 using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in the urgent care (UC), emergency department (ED), or outpatient settings of Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC) between July 23, 2022 and May 19, 2023. 

Additionally, they used a test-negative case-control design to compare the risk of COVID-19 outcomes requiring medical attention between vaccinated COVID-19 cases and RT-PCR test-negative controls.

The team exclusively included children who received 3μg BNT162b2 as a three-dose series. The time gap between doses two and one was three to eight weeks, and doses 3 and 2 were eight weeks minimum.

Further, the researchers computed odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using logistic regression models that included variables such as date of viral encounter, age, gender, race/ethnicity, COVID-19 history, and pediatric risk score. Results

During the study period, 24,261 children aged six months to four years met the inclusion criteria of the criteria, of which 11,615, 7,074, and 5,572 sought admission into the ED, UC, and outpatient settings of KPSC.

Overall, 2,337 children tested SARS-CoV-2-positive (cases), of which 76 (3.3%) received two or three doses of BNT162b2. Of 21,924 controls, 1,382 (6.3%) also received two or three doses of BNT162b2. Related StoriesPhase 3 study: The efficacy of monovalent SARS-CoV-2 vaccine with AS03 adjuvant in adultsModernas adapted COVID-19 vaccine that targets Omicron XBB.1.5 approved by MHRACDC recommendations for pneumococcal vaccine in adults

The median number of days between doses two and three was 61. Likewise, among two-dose recipients, the median number of days since dose two was 59.

Compared with unvaccinated children, the adjusted ORs for children who received a BNT162b2 vaccine (n=1457) were 0.70, 0.60, and 0.67 (95% CI) for a COVID–19–related ED/UC visit, outpatient visit, and either outcome, respectively. 

Note that an adjusted OR of 0.67 equates to vaccine effectiveness (VE) of 33%, computed as one minus the OR, which is lower than ~70% efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19 observed during a clinical trial when Omicron BA.2 sublineages were predominant.

Compared to BNT162b2's three-dose recipients, two-dose recipients were at a lower risk of SARS-CoV-2 encounters during ED, UC, and outpatient visits, although with wide CIs.

By the time young children received their third dose, more immune-evasive Omicron sublineages had emerged and were circulating globally, and the median time since the third versus second dose was longer.

Nonetheless, wildtype BNT162b2 vaccination (at least two doses) reduced the risk of COVID-19 ED, UC, and outpatient visits in children below five years.

To preserve the immunity of young children against SARS-CoV-2 strains circulating in the future, updated COVID-19 vaccines will likely be needed. Journal reference:

Tartof, SY., (2023) Receipt of BNT162b2 Vaccine and COVID-19 Ambulatory Visits in US Children Younger Than 5 Years, JAMA. doi:10.1001/jama.2023.17473. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2809748#:~:text=Receiving%20at%20least%202%20doses,children%20younger%20than%205%20years.

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Sources: Gators might be without 3 DLs vs. Miami

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Sources: Gators might be without 3 DLs vs. Miami

Florida might be without three of its top defensive linemen when it tries to end a two-game losing streak at No. 4 Miami on Saturday night.

The Gators (1-2) will be without defensive tackles Caleb Banks and Michai Boireau, and potentially starting defensive end George Gumbs Jr., sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Saturday.

Gumbs made the trip to Miami (3-0) for Saturday’s game at Hard Rock Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC) and will try to play, but sources told ESPN that he’s unlikely to go.

Gumbs has 10 tackles and a half-sack in three games.

Sources told ESPN that Boireau didn’t travel to Miami and won’t play against the Hurricanes. He has five tackles in two games and missed last week’s 20-10 loss at LSU with an undisclosed injury.

Banks has already been ruled out of the Miami game after suffering a foot injury against LSU. After missing the first two games, Banks played 29 snaps against the Tigers.

Swamp247 reported Wednesday that Banks had surgery on his foot in Birmingham, Alabama, and a timeline for his return wasn’t known.

Brendan Bett, Brien Taylor Jr. and Jamari Lyons will likely continue to get the majority of playing time up front for the Gators.

“We got a really good group. I’m excited about what I see out of the young players in the group,” Gators coach Billy Napier said. “Still enough players there to have a very effective group.”

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Poll: Sellers edges Nussmeier as NFL draft’s QB1

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Poll: Sellers edges Nussmeier as NFL draft's QB1

As the 2025 season began, the volume of high-end quarterbacks resonated as one of the year’s defining themes.

Heading into Week 4, there’s still little clarity regarding who could emerge from that pack as the top quarterback for the 2026 NFL draft.

ESPN polled 25 NFL scouts and executives to see who they projected as the top quarterback for the upcoming draft. The responses were varied, as seven different quarterbacks came back as the answer for QB1 among the 25 different responses.

South Carolina‘s LaNorris Sellers came back as the top vote-getter with 8, edging LSU‘s Garrett Nussmeier (7). The next crop, in order are Miami‘s Carson Beck (3), Oklahoma‘s John Mateer (3), Penn State‘s Drew Allar (2), Arizona State‘s Sam Leavitt (1) and TexasArch Manning (1).

While a handful of hyped players have slumped, the crop is still considered a significant uptick from last season.

The poll should be considered more of a touchstone of the varied opinions than a scientific projection. Last season, we conducted the same poll heading into Week 6. At that time, Colorado‘s Shedeur Sanders led Beck (nine votes to five) among the 25 scouts/executives. Cam Ward got one vote. It’s also uncertain who will declare, as Sellers, Mateer, Leavitt and Manning all have eligibility remaining.

The way scouting works, scouts and general managers don’t evaluate everyone week by week. Many general managers don’t dig in intensively until after the season. There’s a process of checking and cross-checking that often goes by region, so many scouts haven’t dug into all the prospects in the same way they will by the end of the season.

“Much like last year,” a general manager said, “it’s hard to pick this early.”

Why is Sellers the early favorite?

“He’s got most physical talent,” one veteran scout told ESPN. “His ability to scramble and make plays with his feet as a runner. He’s instinctive and the ball comes out quick. He’s got a unique talent level. The kid, his story and how he got there. He’s got a toughness to him. It intrigues people.

“He’s got the makeup, intangibles and ability to run. He’s got the most potential to be an impact player.”

The debate between Sellers and Nussmeier came down to physical traits for some scouts. Sellers is a 6-foot-3 and 240 pound redshirt sophomore who fits the modern paradigm of quarterbacks who can be a threat in the called run game.

Nussmeier is listed at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds and is considered a good athlete, as LSU coach Brian Kelly wanted him to use his legs more this season as part of his development. While both are in their second full season as a starter, Nussmeier has been in school five seasons and is the son of an NFL offensive coordinator.

“Instinctive and finds a way,” another scout said. “He’s got a great feel for the position and a good arm.”

Beck has helped himself in the early part of the season, as he struggled in stretches during 2024 after entering the season as the projected favorite to be the top quarterback in the 2025 draft.

“Let’s see if Beck can continue his renaissance,” said a scout, “because there’s enough ability there.”

Mateer’s performance against Michigan convinced a few scouts, as he also fits the more pure dual-threat role.

Most scouts around the NFL expected Manning to go to school another year, and that belief has been amplified only by his tepid start to the 2025 season.

“He’s very talented,” a scout said. “Just from top-to-bottom, arm talent. Just understanding in the pocket and seeing the field and feeling the field. You see his arm strength.

“He just needs to get everything under control and for the game to slow down.”

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Hacker reveals details of Tesla’s upcoming stripped-down Model Y

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Hacker reveals details of Tesla's upcoming stripped-down Model Y

A hacker has revealed new details of Tesla’s upcoming stripped-down Model Y, which is likely going to be the automaker’s most affordable level yet.

Tesla has been teasing the release of “more affordable models” since last year, but there’s been confusion around what Tesla plans to release.

As we have reported for almost a year, CEO Elon Musk canceled Tesla’s planned “$25,000 EV” in favor of stripped-down versions of its Model 3 and Model Y.

Due to Tesla still referring to them as “new, more affordable models”, many people believed that Tesla would still bring to market new, cheaper models.

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In fact, the automaker initially stated that it would arrive in the “first half of 2025.”

The first half of 2025 came and went without new, cheaper models. Instead, Tesla claimed that the “first build” of the new model was produced in June, and it will launch later this year.

In July, Musk finally confirmed that the first “new affordable model” is in fact simply a Model Y.

The new stripped-down Model Y is codenamed E41 and is expected to feature cheaper materials and fewer features than the normal Model Y, which starts at $45,000 in the US.

It is expected to be similar to what Tesla did with the new base Model 3 in Mexico, which features cloth materials instead of vegan leather, lacks a rear display, has no ambient lighting, and features a less advanced audio system.

However, we now learn that the new affordable Model Y will go further than a cheaper interior.

Green, a well-known Tesla hacker who often reveals new features in vehicles through looking deep in firmware updates, claims to have uncovered new details about the upcoming Model Y E41 through the latest Tesla firmware update.

The details are somewhat limited as he has to decode them from the firmware, but here’s the full list of what he has found out about the new cheaper Model Y:

  • “Essential” and “essential with commodity” audio packages
  • Backup camera without heater
  • No “air wave” in the center console, which likely means no air flow control for the second row
  • A new front fascia
  • Simplified fiberglass headliner
  • Simplified cabin lighting (footwell only)
  • Simplified seat controls (single axis)
  • No power mirror folding
  • No puddle lamps
  • No glass roof
  • No second row display
  • No Tire Pressure Monitoring System
  • Simplified 18″ wheels
  • Downgraded suspension

Tesla has yet to confirm when the new Model Y version will launch, but we previously reported that Tesla is likely waiting for Q4 as it is enjoying strong demand in Q3 from the end of the federal tax credit in the US.

Electrek’s Take

I like “simplified”. I don’t know if the term comes from Green or Tesla, but it certainly works better than “stripped-down,” even though it is also accurate based on what we are learning about the new version.

This didn’t work with the Cybertruck. Tesla quickly discontinued the “simplified” version, but the Cybertruck was already much less popular than Model Y.

I don’t know. This could work. It depends entirely on pricing. If it brings the base price down to $35,000, I can see some people going for it.

However, it will likely devalue Tesla’s “premium” brand and the Model Y significantly.

Also, most of the demand is likely going to come from Model Y buyers in the first place – cannibalizing Tesla’s own sales.

In short, it’s more of a placeholder to slow down the degradation of Tesla’s EV business amid its shift to autonomous driving and robotics, rather than a solution to return to EV growth. That’s a bummer.

Tesla needs brand-new EV models. It’s plain and simple.

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