With the drop in adherence to vaccines, the population is vulnerable to diseases that were already eradicated in the country, such as measles; Check out how to prevent yourself!
Adherence to vaccines has been falling in the last ten years. Although the ideal immunization rate is above 90%, the general rates have been below this value since 2012, reaching 50.4% in 2016. In 2021, the percentage was 60.7%, according to information from DATASUS of the Ministry of health.
With the fall, the population is vulnerable to diseases that were already eradicated in the country, such as measles. This year, the State of São Paulo has already confirmed two cases, alerting authorities throughout the national territory.
According with the doctor. Guilherme Furtado, an infectious disease specialist at Hcor, vaccines are still the best way to prevent viral diseases that can leave sequelae and even cause death. “The National Immunization Program was a great advance in the control of endemic diseases in Brazil and we cannot go back. It is very important that people follow the vaccination schedule. We have recently seen the impact on controlling the COVID-19 pandemic,” she points out.
Amid the simultaneous circulation of COVID-19, measles and flu viruses, the specialist informs that those over 12 years old do not need to comply with an interval between immunizations and can receive the doses on the same day, provided that the indications for each group are respected.
The goal of the Ministry of Health is to vaccinate 70% of the population against COVID-19, 95% of children aged 6 months to 5 years against measles and 90% of priority groups against influenza. “The immunizer offered for free by the Unified Health System for influenza is the trivalent, which protects against Influenza A, H3N2, H1N1 and a strain of Influenza B. Some pharmacies and clinics offer the tetravalent option, with an additional strain of the B virus” , explains the doctor.
Source: Recreio
