Bolivia urges yellow fever vaccination as 7 cases are reported to date
The Bolivia Ministry of Health and Sports is reminding the public that a single dose of the yellow fever vaccine confers lifelong immunity, and therefore urges timely vaccination to avoid the disease when traveling to endemic areas.
“For some years, vaccination coverage for yellow fever has been decreasing and this puts at risk the population that in some way, for vacations, tourism or other circumstances may approach these (endemic) areas, making them more vulnerable and putting them at high risk”, said Vice Minister of Promotion, Epidemiological Surveillance and Traditional Medicine, Max Enriquez.
In Bolivia, through the end of August this year, seven cases of yellow fever were confirmed, between 15 and 64 years of age, of which three died. Only two of the cases had a vaccination history, one verbal and the other with a vaccination card; all had a history of migration from wild, forested areas, due to work activities and others.
“Remind the population that this is a vaccine-preventable disease. For several years now, a single dose has been administered between 12 and 23 months of age. There should be no unvaccinated children, much less elderly people,” the authority said.
Any unimmunized person is susceptible to contracting the disease. Therefore, the vaccine is part of the regular schedule that indicates its application to girls and boys from 12 to 23 months of age. The person who did not comply with the dose can request vaccination at least 10 days before entering an endemic area until the age of 59.
Vaccination is the most important preventive measure, safe, affordable and effective, providing effective immunity within 30 days for 99% of vaccinated people and a single dose is sufficient to confer sustained immunity and lifelong protection against the disease.
Yellow fever is an acute, febrile, endemic and potentially epidemic viral infectious disease transmitted by the bites of infected Aedes aegypti and Haemagogus mosquitoes. It occurs in tropical regions of South America (13 countries) and Africa (34 countries), and has historically been responsible for extensive outbreaks with high mortality. In Bolivia, the endemic regions in the country are in the departments of Beni, Santa Cruz, the tropics of Cochabamba, Pando, and northern La Paz.