José Antonio Forcada, president of Anenvac.
The General Nursing Council (CGE) and the National Association of Nursing and Vaccines (Anenvac), have published two infographics, one for the population and the other for nurses, with information and action guidelines for patients who have suffered Covid-19 seriously to protect themselves against pneumococcus with the 13-valent conjugate vaccine (PCV13), as it is one of the most vulnerable and exposed groups in the pandemic.
As it explains Jose Antonio Forcadapresident of Anenvac, “infectious processes such as the flu and Covid-19 can exponentially increase the risk -already high- of suffering pneumococcal disease”. In fact, according to various studies that have evaluated the effect of the accumulation of factors on the incidence and risk of pneumococcal disease have shown how people with two or more risk factors can present incidences similar to groups considered high risk.
And it is that, as you remember Florentino Perez Rayapresident of the General Nursing Council, “the vaccinesprevent a very important health problem today, such as bacterial infections and what this means later when resistance to antibiotics appears”.
As it explains Maria Enriquez, a nurse at the CGE research institute, the studies show that “there is evidence of persistent respiratory symptoms and structural lung injury in adults who have suffered severe Covid-19. Among people who have suffered severe Covid-19, it is estimated that 50 percent could present pulmonary alterations persistent after the acute phase. In fact, “after at least four months of hospital discharge, more than half of the patients with Covid-19 presented a rsignificant reduction in lung diffusing capacity”.
In fact, some autonomous communities, such as Andalusia or Murcia, have already included patients who have suffered from covid as target groups for vaccination against pneumococcus with a 13-valent conjugate vaccine, since it protects against 13 serotypes of pneumococcus they are responsible for at least 50-76 percent of cases of invasive pneumococcal disease in adults 50 years of age and older.
recommendations
To influence the recommendations, a infographic and a animated video intended for the population in which it is explained what the pneumococcal disease and why it is important that patients who have suffered from severe Covid-19 are vaccinated against this pathology with the 13-valent vaccine (VNC13).
Thus, both institutions establish that only one dose of the VCN13 vaccine should be administered to those who have not previously received it, in people who have overcome covid. This immunization must be carried out once the disease has been overcome, although in application of the precautionary principle, it must be carried out between 15 and 30 days approximately after this, but without delaying any longer in order to protect them as early as possible.
For its part, in the infographic for professionals All the possible cases are explained in the case of patients who have been vaccinated against this pathology, but with other vaccines than PCV13.
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