The Brazilian Society of Infectious Diseases (SBI) defended, this Friday (11), the increase in vaccination, the return of the use of masks and other measures to prevent the current scenario of high in cases of covid-19 from bringing a possible increase. of hospitalizations, overcrowding in hospitals and more deaths in the future.
The entity released a technical alert note, prepared by its Scientific Committee on Covid-19 and Respiratory Infections and signed by the president of SBI, Alberto Chebabo.
“At least in four states of the federation, a trend of curve in significant acceleration of new cases of infection by SARS-COV-2 when compared with the previous month”, says the text, based on data released yesterday ( 10) in InfoFlu Bulletinfrom the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation.
The SBI warns that the scenario is a result of the subvariant Ômicron BQ.1 and other variants and asks that the Ministry of Health, the National Commission for the Incorporation of Technologies in the Unified Health System (Conitec) and the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) pay special attention to the suggested measures.
The first point raised by the scientific society is that it is necessary to increase vaccination rates against covid-19, especially in the different booster doses. SBI assesses that the coverage is all at unsatisfactory levels in the target audiences.
Infectologists also recommend ensuring the acquisition of sufficient doses of vaccine to immunize all children from 6 months to 5 years of age, regardless of the presence of comorbidities. So far, vaccination in the age group of 6 months to 3 years is still restricted to children with comorbidities, and the Ministry of Health started yesterday (10) the distribution of 1 million doses of vaccines intended for them.
SBI also calls for rapid approval and access to second-generation bivalent covid-19 vaccines, updated with the new variants, which are currently under review by Anvisa. wanted by Brazil Agencythe agency replied that the processes are in the final stages of analysis, and deliberation is expected to take place soon, although there is no fixed date for this.
“The National Health Surveillance Agency continues to work on the analysis of requests for emergency use of the new versions of vaccine against covid-19 from the Pfizer laboratory containing the subvariants BA.1 and BA.4 /BA.5. The processes went through the stages of analysis of data submitted to the agency, agency inquiries and clarifications from manufacturers, as well as discussion with Brazilian medical societies. The agency’s technical team has already received expert opinions from medical societies on both Pfizer’s bivalent vaccines”, Anvisa detailed.
The fourth point raised by infectious disease specialists is the need to make medications already approved by Anvisa available in public and private networks for the treatment and prevention of covid-19, such as paxlovid it’s the molnupiravir, a measure that has not yet materialized after more than six months of the license for these drugs in Brazil, emphasizes the SBI. THE Brazil Agency asked the Ministry of Health if these medications are now available, but received no response at the time of writing this report.
The fifth point concerns so-called non-pharmacological preventive measures. SBI defends the return of the use of masks and social distance to avoid situations of agglomeration, especially for the most vulnerable population, such as the elderly and immunosuppressed.
SBI calls for the suggested measures to be taken as soon as possible, to optimize prevention and treatment technologies already available and reduce the chance of a possible future impact of deaths and overcrowding of public and private health services by severe cases of covid-19.
