Background: The immunization of large portions of populations in low/middle-income countries is considered one of the key measures to limit the development of new SARS-CoV-2 variants. However, parental vaccine hesitancy might be an important obstacle to pediatric vaccination. The aim of this survey was to study the prevalence and extent of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among parents of children and adolescents living in Brazil. Methods: Caregivers of children and adolescents referred to the emergency department of Hospital Estadual de Bauru, São Paulo (Brazil) were invited to fill in a validated questionnaire on vaccine hesitancy and to report their willingness for themselves and their offspring to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Results: A total of 501 consecutive caregivers filled in the survey. Response rate was 100%. A minority (N = 14, 2.8%) of caregivers were hesitant about vaccines. Despite this, half of them declared they were willing to vaccinate their offspring against COVID-19. Conclusions: This survey identifies that vaccine hesitancy is very low among caregivers living in Brazil and that even many of the hesitant caregivers are willing to vaccinate their offspring against COVID-19. This study highlights the importance of offering the COVID-19 vaccination to the whole population, including subjects that present uncertainty about other vaccines.
【저자키워드】 SARS-CoV-2, vaccination, children, adolescents, variants, barriers, low-income country, Parent Attitudes about Childhood Vaccines, 【초록키워드】 COVID-19, Brazil, COVID-19 vaccine, Vaccines, pediatric, Vaccine hesitancy, immunization, Population, Prevalence, COVID-19 vaccination, questionnaire, Caregiver, response rate, subject, measure, parent, offspring, vaccinate, country, limit, highlight, new SARS-CoV-2, identify, parental, receive, 【제목키워드】 COVID-19, Brazil, Adolescent, Hesitancy, parent,