The Nation / Specialist guarantees that the vaccine is the best weapon against COVID-19

Specialists say that vaccines are the best weapon to combat COVID-19 in the face of so many myths and false information that circulate on social networks and unsuspecting people who refuse to apply the doses jeopardizing their health, that of their loved ones and their community.

They claim that immunizers are antigens that begin to produce specific antibodies to fight disease.

They are vaccines prepared to provide acquired immunity through the production of antibodies. For example, there are anti-COVID vaccines that contain the inactivated virus, that is, they inactivate the virus causing them to lose their ability to generate the disease. Then there are the vaccines made from the component of the virus; that is, parts of that virus are used to manufacture them.

From the Hospital de Clínicas they recommend isolating yourself during the days prior to receiving the dose and avoiding risk situations such as staying in closed places, without ventilation and with many people inside and even more if one of them is without a mask.

They insist that only 4 weeks after completing the two doses the person is fully immunized and the vaccine acquires a higher percentage of effectiveness. That is, with the second dose we are 90% less likely to develop the severe form of the disease. “The best weapon to combat COVID is to get vaccinated,” said Dr. Fátima Ovando.

Also read: Paraguay adds more than 567 thousand vaccinated against COVID-19

Also, questions arise such as whether it is appropriate to have a swab test before giving the vaccine. Faced with this question, Ovando, head of the Department of Intra-hospital Infection Control and Epidemiology at the Hospital de Clínicas, answered no, because the study would not capture the presence of the virus during incubation.

“It is probable that the person already has the virus in the body, but perhaps the presence in the nasal passages is fluctuating. So today it is negative, tomorrow the vaccine is applied and later the symptoms develop, because the person was already incubating the virus. For this reason, it is not considered useful to be tested before immunization, ”he said.

In case the person has applied the vaccine and was already with COVID, the specialist pointed out that basically what can happen is an overload to their immune system.

“Because the vaccine does not have the ability to produce the disease at all, but the body will be very busy defending itself against the disease, so it really does not constitute a major problem, only that our system will be more tired and busy defending itself against the disease. disease that would already be incubating in the body, “he said.

Also read: Paraguay: Cotenai approved the use of AstraZeneca in people over 50 years of age

For this reason, doctors insist on generating greater awareness in the population about the importance of maintaining care before and after immunization. And not to expose yourself to risky situations; that while vaccines do not prevent infection, they do prevent serious forms of the disease.

“Likewise, once the first dose is applied, we must continue with the care, because we are seeing a lot of relaxation on the part of the population that has already been immunized with the first dose, then they become infected and some even develop the most severe form of the disease. This is because the vaccine does not have the same effectiveness with a single dose, “said Ovando.

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