Health News Roundup: Data shows India's Ahmedabad may have massively undercounted COVID deaths; Pfizer/BioNTech say booster dose increases protection against Omicron in kids aged 5-11 and more

The Chinese-ruled city has been hit by a fifth wave of coronavirus since early this year that has battered business and led to more than 8,600 deaths, many in the past two months, although cases have dropped in recent days. Britain approves Moderna's COVID shot for children aged six and older Britain's medicines regulator said on Thursday it had approved the use of Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine in children between the ages of six and 11 years. Poorer nations shun AstraZeneca COVID vaccine - document .

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Data shows India's Ahmedabad may have massively undercounted COVID deaths

When COVID-19 infections peaked in India in April and May last year, the western city of Ahmedabad officially recorded at least three times as many total deaths in those two months than in the same period in the previous two years, government data showed. The data, provided by Ahmedabad's local administration to a public-information activist and shared with Reuters on Thursday, does not give the cause of those deaths, but it appears to bolster claims of many health experts that India heavily undercounted COVID-19 fatalities.

Pfizer/BioNTech say booster dose increases protection against Omicron in kids aged 5-11

The third dose of Pfizer Inc and BioNTech's COVID vaccine produced significant protection against the Omicron variant in healthy children aged between 5 and 11 years in a trial, the companies said on Thursday. Blood serum analysis of a few pediatric participants who received a booster dose in the study showed a 36-fold increase in Omicron neutralizing antibodies, the drugmakers said.

Britain approves Valneva's easy-to-store COVID shot

Britain approved on Thursday Valneva's COVID-19 vaccine, making it the first European country to give a nod to the French firm's coronavirus shot, which is easier to store and involves a process widely used in making flu and polio vaccines. The shot is also the sixth COVID-19 vaccine to be approved in the UK, whose government had in September scrapped a 1.4 billion euro supply deal.

U.S. FDA delays decision on Regeneron/Roche COVID antibody therapy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has extended by three months its review of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc's application for the full approval of its COVID-19 antibody therapy, the U.S. drugmaker said on Thursday. Before making its decision, the health agency wants to look at additional data submitted by Regeneron on using the antibody cocktail as a preventive treatment.

Worldwide COVID cases surpass 500 million as Omicron variant BA.2 surges

Global COVID-19 cases surpassed 500 million on Thursday, according to a Reuters tally, as the highly contagious BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron surges in many countries in Europe and Asia. The rise of BA.2 has been blamed for recent surges in China as well as record infections in Europe. It has been called the "stealth variant" because it is slightly harder to track than others.

Hong Kong confirms it will ease COVID restrictions from April 21

Hong Kong confirmed on Thursday it will ease some of the world's most stringent COVID-19 restrictions, allowing beauty parlours, cinemas and gyms to reopen from April 21 as infections in the global financial hub hover below 2,000 per day. The Chinese-ruled city has been hit by a fifth wave of coronavirus since early this year that has battered business and led to more than 8,600 deaths, many in the past two months, although cases have dropped in recent days.

Britain approves Moderna's COVID shot for children aged six and older

Britain's medicines regulator said on Thursday it had approved the use of Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine in children between the ages of six and 11 years.

Poorer nations shun AstraZeneca COVID vaccine - document

. Countries declined to receive nearly 35 million AstraZeneca doses, opting to replace them with vaccines manufactured by Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Moderna, the document says.

U.S. extends transit mask mandate through May 3 amid COVID uptick

U.S. health officials on Wednesday extended by 15 days a U.S. mandate requiring travelers to wear masks on airplanes, trains and in transit hubs, saying they needed time to assess the impact of a recent rise in COVID-19 cases. Industry groups and Republican lawmakers want the administration to immediately end the 14-month-old mask mandate. The latest extension would keep the requirements, which had been set to expire April 18, in place through May 3 amid an increase in COVID cases.

England's COVID-19 prevalence dips slightly from record high

England's COVID-19 prevalence fell to 1 in 14 people in the week ending April 9, Britain's Office for National Statistics said on Thursday, compared with a record high of 1 in 13 recorded in the previous two weeks. The ONS also said on Thursday that 3.8 million people in England had COVID-19 in the week to April 9.