The influenza vaccine is approved for use by the general public. The vaccine, which was previously restricted to priority groups, is now available to those over 6 months of age. Goiás received 952 thousand doses of the vaccine. They have already been distributed to the municipalities of Goiás, which are supplied and prepared to immunize the population in more than 900 vaccination rooms in the state.
Regarding the dengue vaccine, of the 158,505 doses received from the Ministry of Health, Goiás managed to apply more than 157 thousand doses. The state received a new shipment from Qdenga, with around 61 thousand doses last Tuesday (30/04). The distribution of the vaccine to the 18 health regions began on Thursday (02/05) and will be aimed at the public aged 6 to 16, in the 246 municipalities of Goiás.
Increase in respiratory diseases worries experts
Despite the sustained drop in the number of registered dengue cases in Goiás, the number of hospitalizations is still a cause for concern for the State Department of Health (SES-GO). The superintendent of Health Surveillance at SES-GO, Flúvia Amorim, explains that, while hospitalizations and deaths due to dengue are still being verified, cases of influenza due to Influenza have increased.
“We are starting to have a period of intersection of dengue cases and respiratory diseases. We have two diseases, one starting to fall, but still in large numbers, and the other starting to rise. We need to double our care, especially with the most vulnerable groups: the elderly, children, pregnant women and postpartum women”, reinforces Flúvia.
Goiás has so far recorded 137,728 confirmed cases of dengue, with 156 confirmed deaths and another 163 being analyzed by the State Committee for the Investigation of Suspicious Deaths due to Arboviruses. The last few weeks have been marked by a reduction of around 22% in diagnoses between weeks 12 and 15 of this year.
In relation to hospitalizations, from the beginning of the year until May, there are 2,878 registered. In the same period of 2023, there were 231 hospitalizations for dengue in state units.
The number of cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) also worries the SES. This year, 2,559 cases were recorded, 161 from influenza and 480 from Covid-19. The majority of SARS cases in 2024 are among children under 2 years old (1,056) and elderly people over 60 years old (557).
Currently, influenza vaccine coverage among priority groups in Goiás is 23.45% and in Brazil it reaches 28.51%.
Department of Health – Government of Goiás
