With an outbreak of meningococcal meningitis, the city of Sao Paulo has already vaccinated more than 30,000 people
The city of Sao Paulo is facing an outbreak of meningococcal meningitis, caused by bacteria. Therefore, the São Paulo Municipal Health Department has vaccinated more than 30,000 people in an attempt to contain the spread of cases, which are not limited to the capital: the entire state has already registered 10 deaths.
Therefore, the Paulista Society of Rheumatology (SPR) advises all patients with immune-mediated rheumatic diseases, such as lupus erythematosus, juvenile idiopathic and rheumatoid arthritis, among others, of all ages, to seek the health unit nearest to review and update the Meningococcal Meningitis Vaccination Card.
In the city of São Paulo, vaccination takes place in the Basic Health Units (UBS), Integrated Outpatient Medical Assistance (AMA) / UBS and in megaposts. Furthermore, immunosuppressed patients have priority.
According to pediatric rheumatologist Gecilmara Salviato, from the Pediatric Rheumatology Commission of the SPR and the Infectious Diseases Commission of SBR, it is very important that the vaccination of patients with immune-mediated rheumatic diseases is up to date.
“The risk of infections is much greater in this special group of patients than in healthy people. This occurs both for the disease itself and for treatments that induce immunosuppression,” the doctor points out.
Meningitis
Meningitis is inflammation of the meninges, the three membranes that surround the brain and protect the brain, spinal cord, and other parts of the central nervous system. That is, the disease can be caused by bacteria or viruses, in the case of meningococcus the causative agent is a bacterium. In this way, people of all ages can develop the condition, being more common among children and teenagers. However, for immunocompromised patients, this risk is greater at any age.
“We now have type C meningococcal meningitis in this outbreak. This is the most serious and worrying, as it has a rapid and unpredictable evolution, with a high mortality rate, around 30%. In addition, it can leave sequelae in those that they survive, like hearing or vision loss, but luckily we have a vaccine against it, “explains Dr. Gecilmara.
Symptoms
The main symptoms of meningitis are:
- Fever;
- Physical pain;
- malaise;
- He retched;
- Headache;
- Convulsion.
In some cases, red spots may appear on the skin, indicating that the bacteria have spread through the body, thus generating a generalized infection.
vaccines
Dr. Gecilmara explains that there are several meningococcal serotypes. One of the most common is type C (responsible for the current outbreak), against which there is an immunizer available for free on the public network. In addition to this vaccine, the National Immunization Program (PNI) also provides immunizations for other types of meningitis.
Children are the target audience for disease awareness campaigns. Three booster doses are indicated, one between 12 and 15 months, another between 5 and 6 years and another between 11 and 12 years. For children and adolescents aged 10 to 19 years, if they did not receive the vaccine in childhood, two doses are recommended, with an interval of five years.
For patients with diseases that lead to immunosuppression, such as those with rheumatic diseases, the vaccine is indicated for all age groups and is available at CRIE (Centers of Reference for Special Immunobiologists).
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Source: Terra
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