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. 2018 Nov 29:52:96.
doi: 10.11606/S1518-8787.2018052001199.

What is the importance of vaccine hesitancy in the drop of vaccination coverage in Brazil?

[Article in English, Portuguese]
Ana Paula Sayuri Sato  1
Affiliations

What is the importance of vaccine hesitancy in the drop of vaccination coverage in Brazil?

[Article in English, Portuguese]
Ana Paula Sayuri Sato. Rev Saude Publica. .

Abstract
in English, Portuguese

The successful Programa Nacional de Imunizações do Brasil (Brazilian National Immunization Program) has been experiencing a major challenge with regard to vaccination coverage for children, which has been dropping. Several aspects are related, but certainly vaccine hesitancy has been strengthening itself as one of the main concerns of Brazilian public administrators and researchers. Vaccine hesitancy is the delay in acceptance or refusal despite having the recommended vaccines available in health services, being a phenomenon that varies over time, over location and over types of vaccines. Hesitant individuals are between the two poles of total acceptance and refusal of vaccination. Vaccine hesitancy is nothing new in European and North-American countries, and even in Brazil, it has been studied even if under another name. The drop of vaccination coverage observed from 2016 on reiterates the relevance of the theme, which must be better understood through scientific research.

O exitoso Programa Nacional de Imunizações do Brasil tem vivenciado grande desafio com relação às coberturas vacinais infantis, que têm apresentado queda. Diversos aspectos estão relacionados, mas certamente a hesitação vacinal vem se fortalecendo como uma das principais preocupações dos gestores e pesquisadores brasileiros. Hesitação vacinal é o atraso em aceitar ou a recusa das vacinas recomendadas quando elas estão disponíveis nos serviços de saúde, sendo um fenômeno que varia ao longo do tempo, do local e dos tipos de vacinas. Indivíduos hesitantes situam-se entre os dois polos de aceitação e recusa total da vacinação. A hesitação vacinal não é novidade em países europeus e norte-americanos e, mesmo no Brasil, ela já vem sendo estudada ainda que sob outra denominação. A queda das coberturas vacinais observadas a partir de 2016 reitera a relevância do tema, que deve ser mais bem compreendido por meio de investigações científicas.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Historical series of vaccination coverage (VC) of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP VC), measles (measles VC) and poliomyelitis (Polio VC) and measles cases confirmed from 1994 to 2018, Brazil.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Brazilian municipalities that achieved vaccination coverage (VC) ≥ 95% for child vaccines diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) (3rd dose), measles (1st dose) and poliomyelitis (3rd dose), from 1994 to 2017.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Coverage of measles vaccine (1st dose) in 2005, 2009, 2013 and 2017, according to municipality, Brazil.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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