Children are among the most vulnerable group after three years of the Covid-19 pandemic ended this Saturday (11). Most Brazilian children still do not have access to vaccination against this disease.

According to the Ministry of Health, among infants and children aged 6 months to four years, coverage with Covid-19 vaccination is 25% for the first dose and 2.5% for the second.

Vaccination against Covid-19 – Photo: Rovena Rosa/Agência Brasil/ND

The basic schedule for this vaccine also includes a third dose eight weeks after D2, and only 0.1% of the target audience received this application. This age group was the last to have access to the Pfizer baby vaccines approved by Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) last September.

Prior to this, children aged three and four years old could be vaccinated with Coronvac approved by Anvisa for this age group in July 2022. Despite this, only 22.87% of children aged three and four received the first dose, while 10.2% received the first dose. the second dose, according to data sent by the Ministry of Health to Agência Brasil.

In the older age group – five to eleven years old – the first approved vaccine was Pfizer Pediatric, back in December 2021. The vaccination itself only started in January 2022 with a delay of more than a month, and a year later, vaccination coverage for the first dose is 71.62% and for the second dose is 51.58%.

risk of infection

Because coverage is still below average for the Brazilian population, children are being exposed to the coronavirus, the spread of which has been amplified by strains of the Ômicron variant.

The president of the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics, Clovis Constantino, said the number of children who fell ill and died from Covid-19 in these three years was considerable. More than 1,800 children under the age of five have died from Covid-19, according to the Child Health Laboratory, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation and the Petropolis Medical School of the Artur de Sa Earp Neto Center (Unifase), Observa Infância. pandemic and October 2022

“Contrary to what was said that the child would not have severe forms of the disease, it manifested itself with a certain frequency, including cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome (SIM) and heart damage,” said Constantino, who also highlights cases of Covid long.

“If the child manages to survive, there is a possibility of prolonged Covid-19, especially in patients with more severe disorders such as SIM, which is a general inflammation of the body that takes a very long time to recover,” he said.

Constantino sees fake news spread [notícias falsas] as an important point for parents’ hesitation to vaccinate their children. In this regard, the pediatrician reassured those responsible for some of the most common doubts: the adverse effects caused by these vaccines do not deviate from the normality of what has already been envisaged for other immunizers, and the technology developed for them was not created overnight. ., but the result of a technological leap, the preparation and use of which in a pandemic took many years.

“The biological substrate was ready a long time ago. All that was missing was sequencing the virus, determining the part of the virus to be used, and adapting the already ready biological platform. This means high product safety. There was no need to doubt yourself,” he explained.

Brazilian Immunization Society Vice President Renato Kfuri lamented that parents first applied for immunizations to protect themselves, but did not do the same to protect their children. An important element of this problem, the doctor considers the spread of false news about vaccination.

“It had a huge impact on pediatrics and people’s trust. It’s something more selective about Covid vaccines, but it eventually extends to other vaccines, the concept of vaccination, the value of vaccines. And perhaps the biggest pillar of the vaccination program is the trust not only in the vaccine, but also in the public authorities,” he stressed.

Elderly

Kfuri noted that throughout the pandemic, much attention has been paid to the risk of worsening disease in older people, and that this comparison with other groups, such as children, has contributed to this age group being overlooked. The problem is exacerbated by the delay in the delivery of vaccines for children, which became available only at a time when the mortality from the pandemic had already passed its worst phase.

“It is fairest to compare not Covid-19 in pediatrics with Covid-19 in adults and the elderly, but Covid-19 in pediatrics with other childhood infections. When we look at it, Covid alone causes more deaths among children than all diseases included in the childhood vaccination schedule. If you add up the mortality from all diseases that can be prevented with vaccines, Covid-19 alone will take more lives, ”he assured.

For Observa Infância co-coordinator Christiano Boccolini, the idea that children are not at risk for Covid-19 is false.

“Children, compared with adults and the elderly, have a lower risk of getting sick, but they are not without risk. The idea that children don’t die from Covid has been sold to society. This was said by the ex-president, this was said by the ex-minister. And it became common sense. Children have a risk, and today it can be prevented through vaccination measures. Every death of a child aged six months or older is a preventable death,” he said.

Also, laboratory co-coordinator Patricia Boccolini recalled the delay in providing a pediatric vaccine to the population and the creation of obstacles, including from the federal government, increasing the possibility of requiring the signing of a condition of consent and responsibility for vaccinating children.

“Government [anterior] did everything to make it difficult. It not only did not help, but also interfered, ”Patricia appreciated. Brazil’s central figure [o ex-presidente Jair Bolsonaro] he had always maintained that he would not vaccinate himself and his daughter, who was a child. All this to demonstrate that the parents bear their share of the blame, but the whole scenario was unfavorable and contributed to the hesitation of these parents, ”recalls Patricia.

Inclusion of the Covid-19 Vaccine

It is very important for the researcher to include the Covid-19 vaccine in the child’s vaccination schedule, making it the responsibility of parents and guardians.

“Vaccinations are emphasized in the Children and Adolescents Act as a right of the child, and this was not respected. The government is only now discussing its inclusion in the official calendar. If it’s right, it should be on this calendar,” he added.

Observa Infância also highlighted that, in addition to the deaths and effects of prolonged Covid, and the mental health effects of lockdown and distance learning, children and adolescents have also been affected by the loss of their parents during the pandemic. A study published late last year by the group counted 40,000 children and adolescents orphaned by their mothers in Brazil due to Covid-19.

“Usually mothers play a central role in the organization of the family. Then comes the relative disorganization of the family, often when children have to be adopted or raised by relatives or other people. And there is a whole issue of social security, for example, issues related to income,” said Cristiano Boccolini.

children and teenagers

In response to an inquiry from Agência Brasil, the Ministry of Health said that the second phase of the National Vaccine Movement, which will take place in March, will increase the importance of vaccination against Covid-19, with a focus on children and adolescents.

The ministry also said it is working with states and municipalities to raise public awareness of the need for vaccinations and to educate parents and guardians on the effectiveness and safety of vaccines and the risks of illness and death for unvaccinated people. According to the press service of the Ministry of Health, in January, the new leadership began negotiations with laboratories to preempt the supply of immunizers that are in short supply throughout the country.

“The Ministry of Health emphasizes that vaccination is the most effective way to save lives from Covid-19. The reduction in deaths and serious cases reported in the country is a reflection of vaccination. To maintain this downward trend, it is essential that the population be vaccinated and follow the vaccination schedule with all recommended doses for each age group. To mobilize the country on the importance of vaccination, the Ministry of Health launched the National Vaccine Movement, which aims to unite the country in order to increase vaccination coverage in all age groups. Vaccines are safe and effective, they protect children, adults and the elderly from the disease,” the ministry said.