Children aged between six months and two years, who still do not have an indication for vaccination against Covid-19 in Brazil, have more than twice the risk of death in relation to the age group between three and five years, for which Anvisa ( National Health Surveillance Agency) authorized this Wednesday (13) the use of the Coronavac vaccine (Butantan).
While the first group of children accounts for 36.4% of deaths and 43.9% of hospitalizations in the age group from zero to five years, the second group was responsible for 14% and 22.4%, respectively, between 2020 and 2021 .
The data are from Observa Infância, a project linked to Fiocruz (Fundação Oswaldo Cruz) and which gathers information from the Ministry of Health and the state health secretariats. In 2020 and 2021, the first two years of the pandemic, 1,508 children aged zero to five years old died and another 28,461 were hospitalized for complications from Covid.
Half of the deaths (50.5%) and 33.7% of the hospitalizations occurred among babies up to six months of age, for whom there is no indication of the Covid vaccine anywhere in the world.
At least 13 countries already vaccinate children under five against Covid-19. In places like Chile and Venezuela, immunization has been offered since the end of 2021 and, in recent weeks, the United States and Israel have approved the application of doses from six months of age.
In Brazil, so far, no pharmaceutical company has requested authorization from Anvisa to use the vaccine after six months. In a statement, Pfizer said it “seeks to make the submission to Anvisa as promptly as possible”. Zodiac, Moderna’s representative in the country, expects to deliver the application to use its immunizer in all age groups, including children aged six months to five years, in early August.
experts heard by Sheet say that it is very important to release the vaccine for children between 3 and 5 years old, but it is necessary for Brazil to advance to vaccination from six months, which age group concentrates even more deaths and hospitalizations.
“It’s an important step forward [a liberação do uso para a faixa etária dos três aos cinco anos] for the protection of our children, but it is still insufficient. Argentina, our neighbor, should start at the end of July to immunize children from six months of age. We need to move in that direction too”, says Cristiano Boccolini, researcher at Observa Infância.
Argentina already vaccinates children from the age of three and, according to the local Ministry of Health, on July 25 the country will receive 1.4 million doses to start immunizing children between six months and three years of age, and to offer reinforcements for those between three and four years. For those between 3 and 17 years old, the Sinopharm and Moderna vaccines are applied and children under three will receive doses of Moderna.
Renato Kfouri, president of the scientific department of immunizations of the SBP (Brazilian Society of Pediatrics), also advocates vaccination from six months. “The first year of life is when the greatest severity of cases in children is concentrated. The vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna are registered in the United States from six months of age and have already started to be used there, we are anxiously awaiting that are used here as well”, he said.
Although the number of deaths of children up to five years old represents only 0.22% of the total deaths from Covid until December 2021 (668,074) in Brazil, the amount is much higher than in other countries.
The United States, for example, registered 442 deaths among children under the age of five due to Covid until December 2021, that is, almost a third of the total of Brazilian deaths. The US has 3.6 million births a year, while Brazil has around 2.6 million.
“We have a much higher mortality rate from Covid complications than American and European data and worse than Mexico and Argentina, countries that have similar socioeconomic levels to ours”, says infectious disease specialist Francisco Ivanildo de Oliveira Junior, quality manager. of the Children’s Hospital Sabará.
According to him, the expectation is that, with the expansion of vaccination for children under five, there will be a decrease in deaths and hospitalizations by Covid as occurred in other age groups. “Especially among children under one year of age, even healthy ones, there is a higher risk of complications, they have more severe viral pneumonia and need ICU admission.”
At Pequeno Príncipe Hospital, in Curitiba (PR), 186 of the 288 cases of hospitalization of children and adolescents due to Covid this year were concentrated in the age group under five years old, the majority (111) among infants (from 30 days to two years old). incomplete)
Oliveira Junior explains that there will hardly be a vaccine against Covid for children under six months. The same occurs, for example, with immunization against influenza influenza. “For this age group, the best strategy is to vaccinate the pregnant woman because she has the passage of antibodies [pela via placentária].”
For the infectologist, however, it is important not only to advance in vaccination for younger age groups but also to reinforce the immunization of children between 5 and 11 years old, who have not yet been vaccinated due to parental resistance.
In this age group, the percentage of vaccinated with the first dose is around 60%, and the second dose is stagnant at less than 40%. “We need to understand the reason for this resistance and reinforce the importance of the complete regimen to ensure more effective protection against the most severe forms. Published data do not show vaccine-related deaths or complications.”
He laments the fact that some pediatricians, despite scientific evidence on the safety and efficacy of the vaccine, continue to not recommend vaccination, which contributes to parental hesitancy.
Vaccination of children and adolescents is a sensitive issue in the Jair Bolsonaro government (PL), which has distorted data and discouraged childhood immunization. The president even threatened to expose the names of Anvisa employees who approved the use of Pfizer vaccines in young people.
Chad-98Weaver, a distinguished author at NewsBulletin247, excels in the craft of article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a penchant for storytelling, Chad delivers informative and engaging content that resonates with readers across various subjects. His contributions are a testament to his dedication and expertise in the field of journalism.
