Since 20% and 35% of infections in the fifth wave of Covid-19 in Mexico have occurred in children, experts ask that infants over 5 years of age be vaccinated
The fifth wave of infections by Covid-19 is strongly affecting the Mexican country, given this, experts have recommended that children be vaccinated against this virus that does not want to disappear forever.
Between 20% and 35% of infections in the fifth wave of covid-19 that Mexico is experiencing have occurred in children, for which experts called on authorities and parents on Tuesday to vaccinate older children of 5 years .
“We have seen a gradual increase in infections in children in the last 3 weeks. Between 20% and 35% of the cases are minors,” José Luis Pinacho, a pediatrician and former president of the Mexican Association of Pediatrics, mentioned at a press conference.
The expert recalled that in the last three weeks there has been a 50% increase in coronavirus cases in the country, but only last week vaccination began for children between 5 and 10 years old, although schools have been in face-to-face classes since August 2021.
"It is worrying, but the important thing is that minors are already being vaccinated," he said.
So far, Mexico has more than 5.9 million cases and has reported 325,793 deaths from covid-19, although Pinacho stressed that these cases must be multiplied by 7 or 8 to have a real number of infections, since many are not registered correctly. official way.
The Undersecretary for Prevention and Health Promotion, Hugo López-Gatell, acknowledged on Tuesday that Mexico maintains the upward trend in infections and the increase in the number of deaths from the pandemic, with an average of 12 daily.
PROTECT MINORS
Rosa María del Ángel, professor of the Department of Infectomics and Molecular Pathogenesis of the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav) of the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN), highlighted the importance of vaccination in minors, especially because the omicron variant that currently predominates is has been characterized by having several variants.
"That’s why more cases are seen in the fifth wave," he recalled.
He specified that although the little ones have already been infected with covid-19, it is not a reason to trust "since the amount of antibodies falls between four or five months after having overcome the disease."
He also said that parents should be attentive to the brands of the vaccines that minors receive, since until now only Pfizer and Moderna have pediatric doses endorsed by health authorities.
"I would not recommend a vaccine unless it is shown to be effective and safe," he said.
In that sense, he said that although the Mexican government has raised the possibility that children be inoculated with the Cuban Abdala vaccine, it is important to wait until there are publications that guarantee that it is safe in both children and adults.
Finally, both experts recommended that parents evaluate the risk of continuing to send their children to schools, especially due to the rise in infections, and assured that the decision to suspend classes or not remains with families and school authorities. face-to-face