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Meningitis: the average deaths are growing in the country, which sees a low adherence to vaccination


The Brazilian states recorded, in 2022, 702 deaths from different types of meningitis. The result of the immunization campaign is, so far, the worst in the last five years

Brazil has already recorded 702 deaths since meningitis this year, according to data from Ministry of Health. The average of 78 deaths per month is already higher than last year, when there were 793 deaths during the year, a monthly average of 66. In 2020, there were 442 deaths, but the number was affected by the pandemic of COVID-19.





The number of cases of the various etiologies of the disease reached 5,800 this year, still below the 2021 total, when it was 6,800.

THE vaccination it is considered the most effective way to prevent bacterial meningitis, but vaccination coverage has declined in recent years. The national multi-vaccination campaign, which includes vaccines against other diseases, will conclude on Friday 30, with just over half (52.08%) of the target audience vaccinated against meningococcus C. Due to low coverage, some states have extended the campaign until 31 October.

The result, so far, is the worst in the last five years. Last year the coverage was 70.96%, in 2020 it reached 78.57% and in 2019 87.41%. In 2018, 88.49% of the population was vaccinated. The target recommended by the ministry is 95%.

Meningitis is characterized by infection of the meninges, the membranes that line the brain and spinal cord. The meningococcal type is one of the most severe forms of bacterial meningitis.

Of the various types of this meningitis, meningococcus C is the most common in Brazil and is treated with the meningococcal vaccine C. The first dose is given at 3 months of age, the second at five and a booster at 12 months. This vaccine is temporarily released for children aged 5 to 10 and for healthcare professionals.

The ministry has also made available the ACWY (conjugated) meningococcal vaccine for protection against the serogroups identified by these letters. This vaccine is intended for adolescents aged 11 to 12 years, in a single dose, but the ministry has released it for temporary use, until September 2023, for adolescents aged 13 to 14.

The coverage of this vaccine, available on the public network only in 2020, is still low, but it is increasing: it was 18.41% in 2021 and reached 22.08% in this year’s campaign.

SP records 295 deaths from meningitis

In the state of Sao Paulo, 295 deaths from meningitis were recorded this year, 42% of the country’s total. The number of cases has reached 2,841, according to the state Department of Health. The file says cases this year are lower than in the pre-pandemic period. On Friday, vaccination coverage for meningitis was 71.7%, above the national average.

In the capital of Sao Paulo, nine deaths were recorded this year, out of 56 confirmed cases. The most recent outbreak occurred in the Vila Formosa and Aricanduva region, with five cases of type C meningococcal meningitis and one death – the victim was a 42-year-old woman. 12,363 people have been vaccinated in the region in the past two weeks, including an active search for unvaccinated people in their homes.

Two more outbreaks of the same disease were recorded in Sao Paulo this year. In Jardim São Luís, between January and March, three cases occurred and two people died. Between May and June, in the Pari region, there were two cases and one death. The Municipal Department of Health reported that the number of cases this year has decreased by 64% compared to 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic. Deaths were three times lower.

Inland cities lacked the vaccine. On the 24th the Municipality of Marília issued a note in which it informed that the lack of the material known as meningo C has generated concern among the residents. “The municipality clarifies that the responsibility for the municipality’s procurement lies with the state, which, in turn, receives the immunobiologicals from the national storage center of the Ministry of Health,” he said.

On Friday, the prefecture reported that the situation had normalized and that more than 4,000 doses of meningo C were available, as well as much ACWY. The city has 22 cases of the disease and four deaths this year.

In Paraná, however, there was a vaccine leak because the expected public did not show up to be vaccinated. In nine municipalities, including Paranaguá, Ponta Grossa, Maringá and Foz do Iguaçu, 6,500 doses of ACWY meningococcus that were supposed to be administered during the month of August were overdue and had to be discarded, according to the state health department.

In Minas Gerais, the number of deaths and cases in the first nine months of this year already exceeds the record of 2021. From January to September, 71 deaths and 465 cases were recorded, while last year there were 51 deaths and 459 cases . In the State, vaccination coverage has reached 75%, while the target recommended by the Ministry is 95%.

In the municipality of Extrema, in the southern region of the state, six cases and two deaths from illness have been confirmed in the last two months. The Minas Gerais Department of Health sent 30,000 doses to strengthen vaccination in the 15 to 59 age group, the same age group in which the deaths occurred.

“I urge everyone to look for our vaccination places, as we have itinerant points posted on social networks and we are also vaccinating in industries,” said Municipal Health Secretary Patricia Carneiro.

With regard to the decline in coverage, the Ministry of Health reported that it had identified, since 2016, this phenomenon, which, according to the ministry, has occurred all over the world. “This situation is being treated as a priority, through the National Immunization Program (PNI), which is developing a series of actions to improve vaccination coverage,” he said.

The Ministry highlighted that, even in this period of decline, the Unified Health System (SUS) it continued to ensure the availability of approximately 300 million immunobiological doses per year. The file reminded that it is the responsibility of parents to take children and adolescents to vaccination stations: there are more than 38,000 rooms across the country.

Low coverage can lead to severe cases

For infectious disease specialist Raquel Stucchi, from the Faculty of Medical Sciences at Unicamp, the risk of low vaccination coverage against meningococcal meningitis is that the country will once again have serious cases, outbreaks and epidemics of meningitis as happened in the years’ 70.

“This low vaccination coverage puts our children at risk in the sense that they could get sick. Meningococcal meningitis is a big concern because it is a disease that has a very high lethality, which sometimes leads to death in a short period of time. surviving children have serious consequences such as loss of vision, hearing and limb amputation. It is extremely worrying. “

The specialist states that meningitis can be caused by bacteria, viruses and fungi and is always a serious condition. “Viral meningitis, in general, is usually not very serious, but we don’t have a vaccine. Bacterial meningitis is always very serious. They are caused by haemophilus influenzae type B, pneumococcus and meningococcus and we have vaccines against these bacteria in our vaccines. “.

Remember that the clinical picture of all meningitis begins in a similar way, with a high fever, body aches and a lot of headache. Meningococcal disease is characterized by the appearance of red spots on the body. “Fever, headache and the appearance of red spots strongly suggest meningococcal meningitis.”

According to the Ministry of Health, meningitis is considered an endemic disease in the country, with cases recorded throughout the year, with occasional outbreaks. Bacterial meningitis is more common in the fall-winter and viral meningitis in the spring and summer.




The meningitis vaccine is available for children and adolescents in SUS

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Source: Terra

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