Infectious disease specialists, 'vaccination coverage is decreasing, we need to review the autumn campaign'

“There is a problem of vaccination coverage in Italy. It also emerged during the Escmid Global congress in Barcelona”, the annual event that brings together microbiologists and infectious disease specialists from all over Europe and beyond, “the anti-Covid one in Italy does not it has been very effective, we have reached 12% of those at risk immunized while the rest of Europe is above 50%. Italy must review its vaccination policy and a joint Simit-Siti document will be released in a few days to prepare for it next autumn vaccination campaign which – in our opinion – will also have to recommend anti-Covid together with anti-flu. There is also concern about the measles epidemic which is creating various problems in various European states. In short, the issue of vaccination coverage The priority of health policies must return.” This was underlined to Adnkronos Salute by Massimo Andreoni, scientific director of the Italian Society of Infectious and Tropical Diseases (Simit) and full professor of Infectious Diseases at the Tor Vergata University of Rome, who participated in the Escmid Global congress.

What were the main focuses of the conference event? “Antibiotic resistance represents a public health problem in all countries – replies Andreoni – Several studies were presented at Escmid on new approaches to combat superbugs. Among these strategies, the one that uses phage viruses seems interesting ' which attack bacteria in a very specific way. They are viruses that are not capable of infecting human cells but of attacking bacterial cells of pseudomonas or staphylococcus, for example.”