BRASILIA – After reintroducing pregnant women and purperae (women in the postpartum period, 45 days) among the priority groups for receiving vaccination against COVID-19, the Ministry of Health warned yesterday that this should be done with Pfizer’s (ComiRNAty) immunizing agents. or Sinovac/Butantan (CoronaVac, ButanVac). Immunization for this group was suspended in May due to a serious adverse event that occurred to a pregnant woman who was vaccinated with the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine. Putty’s recommendation is to vaccinate pregnant women and Purpera without comorbidities with the CoronaVac and Pfizer vaccines. As such, the AstraZeneca and Janssen vaccines are not recommended for women who are pregnant and with or without comorbidities. “After analyzing the data and extensive discussion with scientists, there was an understanding of a return to vaccinating pregnant women without comorbidities. We understand that there is no reason to suspend this vaccination,” said the Minister of Health, Marcelo Quiroga.
Although the Department of Health recommendation was only issued now, after about two months of suspension, some states have already returned to vaccinating pregnant women without comorbidities. In the state of São Paulo, for example, the vaccination of this group of women was launched in early June. Asked if the ministry was delaying as recommended, as states had already started vaccinating pregnant women without comorbidities even without the file’s approval, Quiroga showed irritation and said “there was no delay at all.”
Unsafe mixture
In addition, the Ministry has also decided that pregnant women who have already received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine should wait to take the second dose after the puerperium, thus completing the vaccination schedule. In the state of Rio de Janeiro, women who are pregnant and women who have given birth to children for up to 45 days and who have taken the first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine will be able to complete the vaccination schedule with the second dose of Pfizer. However, according to the minister, it is not yet safe to determine the application of a second dose of the vaccine from another brand in these women. There is no scientific evidence for the interchangeability of vaccines in pregnant women. Therefore, we will maintain the direction of the National Immunization Program,” he said.
Quiroga also asked municipal and state health secretaries not to change PNI guidelines “on their own.” “Of course, ministers of state and municipalities enjoy their independence, but not to change the essence of what was discussed in the tripartite policy,” he said.
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