RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – For the first time in 2021, the Covid-19 mortality rate has not increased in any Brazilian state, noted the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in its pandemic monitoring report on Thursday, July 8.
The institution reports a “substantial” decrease in ICU bed occupancy by Covid-19 patients in most states, notably Tocantins (90% to 71%) and Sergipe (88% to 56%).
The occupancy rates of these beds fell at least five percentage points in another 14 states. In the largest capitals, the decline was less: in Rio de Janeiro it went from 63% to 59%, and in São Paulo from 76% to 72%.
The Federal District registered stability, with 82% of ICU beds for the disease occupied. Regarding the severity level, only Roraima (97%) has an occupancy rate above 90% and in the critical zone (between 80% and 90%) remain Paraná (89%) and Santa Catarina (85%), as well as the Federal District.
Over the past two weeks the number of new cases and deaths has dropped nationwide, the institution said. Nevertheless, the researchers urge caution.
Despite the drop in pandemic statistics, the incidence rates of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), an indicator of Covid-19, still remains high in several states, Fiocruz notes.
Fiocruz researchers also reported a reduction in mortality that has not been accompanied in the incidence rate of the disease, which points to the impact of vaccination: people still become infected, but the number of deaths is not as high proportionately.
The scenario is leading to a gradual change in the age profile of people infected by and dying from the disease, with those affected increasingly being younger adults rather than the elderly.
As for vaccination, Fiocruz says that Brazil has vaccinated over 45% of the adult population with at least one dose and about 16% with both doses.
In the studied week, 11 states registered a lower percentage of fully vaccinated individuals than the national average, notably Maranhão, Paraná, Rondônia, and São Paulo.
The document also points out that the lack of national coordination led states and municipalities to adopt their own criteria with respect to priority groups. As a result, in some places the first dose vaccination schedule was advanced and there has been a shortage of vaccines for the second dose.
Source: Valor