They urge the government to increase vaccination against polio

Given the recent case of poliomyelitis reported by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)the Venezuelan Society of Infectious Diseases urged the national government to guarantee mass vaccination against this disease. They ask that an immunization rate be reached above 95% of the population.

In a statement dated Saturday, October 19, broadcast on

The Ministry of Health’s AFP surveillance system reported one case of polio in May, they warned.

“The vaccine Sabin 3 virus (VDPV3) was isolated through genomic sequencing and it was confirmed in the national reference laboratory, the ‘Rafael Rangel’ National Institute of Hygiene located in Caracas, that it is a poliovirus associated with the vaccine without mutations,” the document reads.

The Venezuelan Society of Infectious Diseases also reported that since 2016 the government has not published the epidemiological bulletin.

“It is an important instrument of epidemiological surveillance based on indicators and it should be noted that every case of AFP is mandatory reporting at the local, regional and global level, since clinical suspicion allows epidemiological surveillance and outbreak control to be strengthened.”

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— SVINFECTOLOGY (@svinfectologia) October 20, 2024

They ask to invest in vaccines

The Venezuelan Society of Childcare and Pediatrics also urged the Ministry of Health to increase investments and coverage in the vaccination soonin order to avoid the reappearance of vaccine-preventable diseases.

“It is vitally important that the child population and the general population have up-to-date vaccine certificates. It is also urgent to reduce the cases of ‘zero dose children’ that have increased in the Americas and in Venezuela particularly,” reads a statement issued on Friday, October 18 by the Society.