COVID-19 is still with us: don’t forget to update your vaccination schedule

How is your vaccination schedule going? COVID-19? Although little was said about the subject again, the call from the health authorities continues to be to complete all doses. And it is that the World Health Organization (WHO) it still views the disease as a global emergency.

The complete schedule of vaccines against COVID-19 in Colombia for those over 18 years of age is as follows: the recommendation is that adults have the first or initial dose, one month later the second dose, and after four months the first booster is applied and another 4 months later, the second reinforcement.

For people 12 to 17 years of age at least one booster 4 months after completing the initial two doses.

And for children from 6 months of age to 11 years, two doses of the basic scheme are established (this scheme for 6 months has just been approved by Invima and the Government is expected to include it in the plan). If there is any health condition, the doctor can order a first or second booster in minors.

Dr. Carlos Álvarez, infectologist and epidemiologist, explains why it is important to complete the scheme: “The protection of vaccines is decreasing not only because of the human being’s own defenses, but also because when the virus changes, these antibodies are less effective. For this reason, when we get vaccinated with a first or second booster, we cause that decrease to increase again significantly. After six months, the protection can be only 30%, when I put on a reinforcement the protection can be 60 or 70%”.

Without a doubt, although today the panorama with COVID-19 is very different, it cannot be forgotten that the vulnerable are still vulnerable and that is why vaccines are so important: because they especially protect against complications or severe symptoms.

In addition, there is still uncertainty about the variants that may arise. The important thing is that the vaccines we have offer protection against these new variants.

The ideal would be to have updated or bivalent vaccines, that is, they already include specific protection against these new variants, but there are no announcements from the Ministry of Health in this regard.

Vaccines against COVID-19 have been applied to billions of people and have saved millions of lives. In addition, they not only prevent the complications of the virus but also prolonged COVID-19.

Remember that it is not only individual protection but also vulnerable people and, in the case of pregnant women, the protection of babies up to six months old.