This year, for the first time, the common flu vaccine will be extended to boys and girls aged six months to five years The whole Spanish state, including Bascardi will invite nearly 65,000 boys and girls to be vaccinated, Among them there are more than 22,000 Gypskos. There are 1.6 million in the whole of Spain. 6 to 59 months. As usual, the vaccination will be voluntary, but endorsed by the Spanish Pediatric Association (CAV-AEV).
As Javier Álvarez, a member of the organization’s Vaccine Advisory Committee, reported to the EFE agency on Tuesday, all communities have already received doses of this fall’s flu vaccine, with target groups usually starting in October. Vaccination, and usually open to other groups in early November.
Alvarez said the kids will get Intranasal therapy is suitable for children between the ages of two and five; and intramuscular injection in children, between 6 and 23 months. Children under six months are not required to be vaccinated.
Will be administered intramuscularly between 6 and 23 months and intranasally after three years
According to the expert, only Andalusia, Galicia and Murcia have had flu vaccinations for this age group in the past, and the results have been “very good”, with coverage reaching 50%. This year’s goal is to achieve an average response rate of 55% to 60%.
Vaccination of more than half of the children in the belt could have important health benefits for the general population in controlling the virus, as pediatrician Pedro Gorrotxategi admitted to this newspaper yesterday that “children are great transmitters of the virus”. For example, from the experience that happened in Japan, vaccinating children can prevent many infections in adults.”
“Previously, only high-risk children with underlying diseases or who lived with high-risk family members were vaccinated,” acknowledged Gorrotxategi, who called flu vaccination in children “positive” and “advisable.” The “novelty” of this year is that these minors will be included in the target group and “special actions” will be carried out. Children between the ages of 6 and 14 are not allowed on the premises, but flu rates remain high until that age group.
Gorrotxategi, a representative of the Spanish Primary Care Pediatric Association (Aepap), said the next step would be to align these doses with the general vaccination schedule, because while influenza can be administered at the same time as other vaccines, “there are fewer vaccinations,” the Pediatric Association’s them added. “Some are better, because the pressure overlaps all the time,” he said.
“Children are important transmitters of the virus and vaccinating them could prevent many infections in adults”
Pedro Gorotsatgui.Pediatrician
“We also don’t have the rules yet on how to do that. They’ll send us some instructions”, admits Gorrotxategi, who assures the need for education among the population, since the flu shot is linked to people over 65 years old.
55%-60% coverage
Although the goal is to reach as many people as possible, Javier Álvarez, a representative of the Spanish Pediatric Association, believes that a coverage rate of more than 50% will bring “significant benefits, because” the virus stops spreading, or the degree to which it spreads. Smaller numbers, so not only those who get vaccinated, but those around them also benefit. ”
Alvarez stressed that the decision to vaccinate healthy children was made “to protect those who were vaccinated, but also because they are the main transmitters of influenza, mainly in schools and daycare centers, and they transmit the virus to those who are The people they live with.”
In the case of influenza, the expert admits, “it is difficult for people to realize that it is not a trivial disease” and that it is not immune to complications, especially the smallest ones: “Influenza must be taken seriously”, he warned.
The numbers are there: Influenza affects 20% to 40% of children Depending on the annual prevalence, 5% of cases end up in hospital due to its severity.
5% of childhood infections end up in hospital because of their severity
Two-thirds of the children in the hospital are healthy, that is, there is no underlying disease, so it is recommended “Vaccinate everyone, vaccination is always a value”, reiterate.
So this fall, the flu vaccine already on the national health system’s schedule will target this group, as well as children with underlying medical conditions, regardless of age.
Amos García Rojas, member of the European Standing Group of the World Health Organization and honorary member of the Spanish Association of Vaccinology (AEV), also delivered a speech. He believes the measure will “have an important effect on the spread of the disease”. In a statement to EFE news agency, García Rojas insisted that in countries where healthy children had been vaccinated, “significant reductions in influenza cases among adults were observed”.
“The Most Effective Tool”
The Basque government had publicly recommended last year that both the COVID-19 vaccine and the common flu vaccine were the “most effective tool” against the viruses, and urged the entire population, not just those at high risk, to get vaccinated. But Gorot Satergui acknowledged that the number of children vaccinated is not high.
all, Basque Country buys 651,500 doses of latest strain in 2022 campaign against flu, It could be expanded to 781,000 people if necessary, so the vaccination campaign was extended until the end of December because 461,903 people had been vaccinated and vaccines were available during the initial phase, between October and November.
Of all those vaccinated, 75% are people over the age of 65, the main group who get the vaccine every year. As well as the elderly, high-risk groups include people with chronic medical conditions, pregnant women, and health and social hygiene professionals.