There’s no doubt that health and children in Cuba are a priority if we talk about the fact that this small island in the Caribbean was able in record time to develop five vaccine candidates, some already considered vaccines against the Covid-19 pandemic, and on the other hand, we will develop the first National Children's Campaign against this virus worldwide.

In the last weeks have strongly shocked the entire population due to the elevated number of infections, with a higher incidence in Cienfuegos, Pinar del Río, Havana, and, especially, the younger group has also experienced greater hospitalizations to control the life specs of the minors and prevent more serious symptoms from developing outside of hospitals and without the medical supervision.

Luckily for the whole family, last week on the television Space Mesa Redonda, the start of vaccination to protect children and adolescents, who are the ones pending immunization not only in Cuba but also in almost all countries, a program that encourages the return to schools with face-to-face education.

The Ministry of Public Health of the nation, Dr. José Ángel Portal Miranda in his personal Facebook profile a few days ago pointed out that “achieving high vaccination coverage and thus having a significant impact on reducing the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 it will only be possible if, like adults, the pediatric population is also vaccinated”.

With Soberana 02, SoberanaPlus, and Abdala, millions of Cuban children will live protected and their families with be a bit more relieved, it will ensure that their children don’t become infected with SARS-CoV-2, and if they fall ill they will not develop more complicated symptoms or die, although, as has been well explained before, the immune response of children is almost always greater than that of adults.

Regarding the need to vaccinate this group 2-18 years old, Portal Miranda assured that, “in the first wave of the disease, infections in the pediatric population in Cuba were around 200 cases, and in the second wave, this figure climbed to 600 children and adolescents. Until now, more than 115 thousand minors have been affected by Covid-19”.

He specified that "with the appearance of more contagious strains of the virus, like the Delta, the potential displacement on the number of infections from adults to the pediatric group, in correspondence with the advance of vaccination of the former, has been verified." For both adults and minors it has been specified that even after vaccination you have to keep taking care of yourself.

In more medical terms about the pediatric population, the highest health authority explained that “despite the fact that the asymptomatic form is most common among them, cases of high viral loads have been described in young children, and it has also been observed in these cases the replication of the virus in the gastrointestinal tract, which facilitates its dissemination”.

Running parallel to the vaccination program that with huge efforts the government prioritizes with the support of others who have made donations of medical supplies such as syringes, it’s essential that preventive measures remain in force and the population keep high its risk assessment since nowadays it’s not rare to see children playing carelessly in the streets.

Translated by Amilkal Labañino / CubaSí Translation Staff