Municipalities in the North of Minas, a region that had not received the dengue vaccine at first, received this last Thursday (2) the first doses of the vaccine that will be available through the SUS, for children and adolescents aged between ten and 14 years old. The initiative covered only six of the 54 municipalities within the jurisdiction of the Regional Health Superintendence (SRS). Together, they will receive 7,083 doses.
For Montes Claros there are 6,577 doses; Mirabela (213); Claro dos Poções (119); Itacambira (69); Juramento (62) and Glaucilândia (43). In the first stage of distribution, the Ministry of Health considered criteria such as the population of the municipality, which should be equal to or greater than 100 thousand inhabitants and with high dengue transmission in recent years, presence of serotype 2 and a greater number of cases in monitoring. from 2023/2024.
“At first, we did not receive it, due to lack of vaccine and because we did not meet criteria established by the Ministry of Health. In this shipment, now, only the municipalities in the macro-region received it and in small quantities”, explains Agna Menezes, coordinator of the Epidemiological Surveillance Center from the Regional Health Superintendence (SRS), which recommends not relaxing care despite a slight improvement in the scenario. “Regarding the number of reported cases, we noticed a reduction, demonstrating an improvement in the epidemiological situation”, she confirms.
According to the latest Epidemiological Bulletin, the North of Minas has reported 77,652 probable cases of dengue, with 18,472 confirmed. The confirmed deaths are 18 and 29 deaths remain under investigation. The predominant serotype in the region is 1, which corresponds to 96% of cases. Serotype 2 represents a rate of 4%. In Coração de Jesus and Salinas, the circulation of serotype 3 has already been detected, according to the regional health department.
Guilherme Sizilio is a resident of Augusta Mota, a neighborhood with an excess of lots that accumulate high grass, trash and stagnant water. Father of teenagers aged 12 and 16, he says he is relieved to know that at least one of his children will be able to get vaccinated. “The fear is so great that we carry out weekly inspections at home. We all use repellent and a fan on 24 hours a day”, says Luiz Guilherme Sizilio’s father.
He regrets that not everyone has the chance to access the vaccine. “If it were for me, as I am 50 years old, I would definitely get vaccinated”, says Guilherme. He will have to wait a little longer. The Federal Government’s forecast, which acquired the manufacturer’s entire stock for 2024, around 5 million vaccines, is that they will arrive by the end of the year. For 2025, an additional 9 million vaccines were contracted in order to expand the target audience. Until then, the goal is to ensure that those vaccinated receive the second dose, three months after the first application.
STRATEGIES
In the videoconference held last Thursday, with immunization technicians from municipalities already benefiting from dengue vaccines, Josiane Dias Gusmão, coordinator of the National Immunization Program (PNI) in Minas Gerais, clarified that municipal health departments will have autonomy to develop their own immunization strategies for those aged ten to 14 years old.
“Each municipality knows its reality and, therefore, may adopt as a strategy the initial vaccination of teenagers aged ten and 11 and gradually expand the age range”, suggested the coordinator.
In turn, Aline Mendes Vimieiro, technical reference for the SES-MG Immunization Coordination, recalled the importance of municipalities recording the application of vaccine doses in e-SUS, Primary Health Care and the Information System of the National Immunization Program (SI-PNI). This will enable the Ministry of Health to monitor the evolution of vaccination in the State and, therefore, enable the transfer of more vaccines to complement the two-dose vaccination schedule, or even expand vaccination to other municipalities. The second dose of the dengue vaccine is administered three months after the first.
