SITUAÇÃO VACINAL DAS PESSOAS IDOSAS ACOMETIDAS PELA COVID-19 ASSISTIDAS PELA ESTRATÉGIA SAÚDE DA FAMÍLIA NA FRONTEIRA BRASIL-PARAGUAI

Abstract

The emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic meant significant impacts on public health. Efforts were made to mitigate the effects of the disease, especially for those classified as at-risk populations. In Brazil, it was observed that the offer of vaccination significantly impacted the reduction of morbidity and mortality, especially in the elderly population. Thus, the study aims to know the vaccination status of elderly people affected by Covid-19, assisted by the Family Health Strategy (ESF) on the Brazil-Paraguay border. This cross-sectional study was carried out with the elderly population affected by Covid-19, assisted by the ESF in the micro-region of Ponta Porã in Mato Grosso do Sul. After identifying the people affected by Covid-19, who were out of the isolation period for up to 30 days, telephone contact was made, and a subsequent home visit was made, at which time an instrument was applied for sociodemographic characterization of the specific health condition to Covid -19 and vaccination status. The interviews took place from May/2021 to March/2022. Descriptive analysis was performed, with results presented in absolute and relative frequencies and measures of centrality and dispersion. Poisson regression test with robust variance was applied to estimate the prevalence ratio and the respective confidence interval about the outcome “complete vaccination cycle”. A significance level of 5% was adopted. A total of 140 elderly people participated in the study, and the largest proportion were aged up to 79 years (81.4%), female (63.6%), and self-declared white (50.7%). Regarding schooling, 56.8% have an incomplete elementary school, 10.1% complete high school, and only 0.7% have higher education. Those who said they had no income or received up to one minimum wage corresponded to 50.4% of the studied population. As for the vaccination situation, it was observed that 85.0% of the participants had completed the vaccination cycle established with the two doses, in the cases of the CoronaVac, AstraZeneca, and Pfizer vaccines, or with the single dose of the Janssen vaccine, and the vaccine administered with CoronaVac was the most frequent (81.7%). The average time between the first and second dose of vaccines was 30.15 ± 21.96 days in CoronaVac; in Pfizer the interval was 76.5 ± 14.84 days, and among those who received the immunizer from AstraZeneca the mean time was 83.46 ± 28.79 days. The time between the appearance of the first symptom of the disease and the confirmation of the diagnosis was, on average, 4.05 ± 2.91 days, and the mean time between the completion of the primary vaccination cycle and the confirmation of the diagnosis of Covid-19 was 140.02 ± 109.24 days. No association was observed between the completion of the vaccination cycle and sociodemographic variables. Finally, it was found that vaccination coverage was lower than recommended by the Ministry of Health and that the protocol established by the state government differed from that established by the federal government. The diagnosis of Covid-19 among vaccinated people occurred after the average period reported in the vaccine efficacy literature. In this sense, strengthening the ESF in facing the pandemic, especially with actions aimed at vulnerable groups, has become imperative in the fight against Covid-19. Descriptors: Covid-19; Aged; Covid-19 Vaccines; Family Health Strategy.