National Senior Health Promotion Week: Experts call for getting rid of "vaccine misunderstandings" and promoting healthy aging

Do parents need to be vaccinated? Which elderly diseases can be prevented by vaccines? On the afternoon of July 20, a media science salon with the theme of "enhancing prevention awareness and promoting elderly health" was held in Hefei, Anhui Province, on the occasion of the 2023 "National Elderly Health Promotion Week". Zhu Liwei, director of the Infection Control Department and director of the Preventive Health Clinic of Hefei First People's Hospital, conducted in-depth discussions with local mainstream media, calling on the public to pay attention to disease prevention in the elderly, raising awareness of vaccination among all sectors, and promoting healthy aging.

July 24-30 is the fifth National Senior Health Promotion Week. With the theme of "Scientific Fitness Promotes Senior Health", the National Health Commission, the State General Administration of Sports and the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine jointly launched the 2023 National Senior Health Promotion Week. In combination with the characteristics of the elderly, the event will promote the concept of positive aging and healthy aging through a variety of means such as elderly health education videos. Vaccination, prevention and treatment of common and chronic diseases in the elderly, injury prevention, emergency assistance, mental health, life education and other health science knowledge are an important part of this event.

"The decline in immune function due to aging is called immunosenescence." At the science salon, Zhu Liwei analyzed that due to degenerative changes in the body, declined immune function, and decreased physical function caused by chronic diseases, the elderly are more likely to become susceptible to infectious diseases.

"For example, people who have had chickenpox in the past will have their cellular immune function gradually reduced as they age, and the varicella-zoster virus lurking in the body will be activated, leading to shingles. People over 50 are prone to shingles, and the older you are, the more likely you are to get sick, and the more serious the condition will be."

Which diseases that are more susceptible to in the elderly can be prevented by vaccines?

"Influenza, pneumonia, shingles..." Zhu Liwei introduced that currently, there are many types of vaccines available for elderly people in China, including the new coronavirus vaccine, influenza vaccine, pneumococcal vaccine and shingles vaccine.

"However, we have learned that the elderly generally lack awareness of the dangers and prevention of vaccine-preventable diseases, and there is a phenomenon of 'vaccine hesitancy'." Once they become ill, the elderly suffer physically and mentally, their quality of life declines, and the disease burden borne by individuals and society also increases.

"Many people, especially the elderly, often have a misunderstanding when getting vaccinated - they think that people with chronic diseases cannot be vaccinated." Zhu Liwei explained that chronic diseases are not an absolute contraindication to vaccination. In fact, people with chronic diseases are more susceptible to infectious diseases due to their low immunity, which also increases the difficulty of chronic disease management. Therefore, vaccination is more necessary to actively prevent the corresponding diseases. Taking herpes zoster as an example, compared with the general population, patients with diabetes, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and rheumatoid arthritis have a significantly increased risk of developing herpes zoster.

Many guidelines for the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases recommend vaccinations for common infectious diseases in the elderly, especially those with chronic diseases, including influenza, pneumococcal infection, and herpes zoster. Chronic disease patients with stable health conditions and good medication control are recommended to receive vaccinations under the guidance of a physician at the vaccination clinic.

"Therefore, we specifically recommend that you remind or take the elderly at home to the vaccination clinics of comprehensive medical institutions or community health service centers for relevant vaccinations to reduce their probability and risk of illness. These vaccines are also traceable and safe," said Zhu Liwei.

Zhu Liwei also gave popular science lectures on the effectiveness of vaccines.

"The effectiveness of vaccines can be measured from two aspects: the protective efficacy of the vaccine and the duration of protection." On the one hand, the protective efficacy of the vaccine refers to the degree to which the risk of disease is reduced in the vaccinated population compared with the unvaccinated population. If the protective efficacy of the vaccine is 80%, it means that the risk of disease will be reduced by 80% after vaccination. On the other hand, the duration of protection for each vaccine is different, which is mainly related to the technical route, expression system and production process used by the vaccine. At the same time, Zhu Liwei emphasized that for people with immune deficiencies such as HIV patients and tumor patients and people using immunosuppressants, it is recommended to consult a doctor before determining the type of vaccination.