Nova Petrópolis City Council – The Ministry of Health advises residents to be vaccinated against yellow fever

The Department of Health and Social Assistance of the Municipality of Nova Petrópolis advises municipal residents who have never been vaccinated against yellow fever or who do not know their vaccination status, especially residents of rural areas, to seek out basic health units (UBSs) to receive thevacuum.protection. This year, 626 people have already been vaccinated with this vaccine in the city, but the measure is still recommended by the state Ministry of Health, based mainly on the identification of cases of the disease in non-human primates (monkeys) recently discovered in neighboring municipalities.

According to the information memorandum issued by the state, municipalities are directed to work on two fronts to prevent the spread of the disease. In the wild, the disease is caused by the bites of mosquitoes infected with the yellow fever virus, which is why unvaccinated people who enter forests are more at risk. Yellow fever has not occurred in urban areas in Brazil since 1942. The disease is not transmitted through direct patient contact.

To prevent the spread of the disease, measures should include investigating an epidemiological case (the death of monkeys) and promoting vaccination of the population. City councils should strengthen preventive measures by actively searching for unvaccinated persons and communicating the importance of vaccination, collecting biological samples from animals found, when possible, to monitor the progress of the disease, and sending the collected information to responsible bodies to enable mapping. Before the competent authorities.

With regard to strengthening the vaccination process, the aim of this measure is to reach populations that have not yet received vaccination against yellow fever and ensure protection for children from nine months of age. To do this, in Nova Petrópolis, residents can search for the health center closest to their homes, where everyone uses this vaccine (depending on the day and time determined by each location).

Yellow fever in the region

Wild yellow fever occurs in forest areas and the mosquitoes responsible for transmission belong to the genera Haemagogus and Sabethes. The virus spreads in forest environments and can infect monkeys and humans who enter these areas. Non-human primates, such as the howler monkeys recently found dead in Caxias do Sul and Tres Couroas, are generally the main victims of yellow fever in nature.

According to the municipal environmental monitoring, the last case of a monkey found dead from yellow fever in Nova Petrópolis was in May 2021. It should be noted that these animals do not transmit the disease, but rather act as sentinels to signal their presence in the area. The area where the virus is spreading.

Take the vaccine!

Until yellow fever develops, it can remain in the body for three to 15 days. Health authorities consider anyone who has not been vaccinated or does not have vaccination information, who has had a sudden onset of severe fever, jaundice and/or bleeding, and has been in places where the disease occurred, to be a possible suspect. Therefore, it is important that everyone who has not yet received protection against the virus goes to the UBS bank closest to their home to update their vaccination card.

The yellow fever vaccine is part of the national immunization calendar and has its own application schedule. Check it below:

– Infants and children aged nine months to five years: receive a dose at nine months and a booster dose at four years.

– People aged five years and over: receive one dose.

The vaccine that protects against yellow fever may be given in conjunction with other vaccines on the calendar. In case of pregnant women, people with comorbidities and elderly people aged 60 years or above, a prescription is required to get the vaccine.

Check the vaccination schedule according to the health center:

Monday: UBS Vale do Caí

Tuesday: UBSs Centro, Linha Imperial and Vale Verde

Wednesday: UBSs Piá and Vila Germânia

Thursday: UBS Vila Germânia and Linha Brasil

Fridays: UPS Pinhal Alto

Photo credit: Adriana Rabassa/Comunicação PMNP