RESUMO
Despite the speedy development of vaccines for COVID-19, their rollout has posed a major public health challenge, as vaccine hesitancy (VH) and refusal are high. Addressing vaccine hesitancy is a multifactorial and context-dependent challenge. This perspective focuses on VH in the world region of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and includes people suffering from severe mental illness, therefore covering populations and subpopulations often neglected in scientific literature. We present an overview of VH in LAC countries, discussing its global and historical context. Vaccine uptake has shown to widely vary across different subregions of LAC. Current data points to a possible correlation between societal polarization and vaccination, especially in countries going through political crises such as Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. Poor accessibility remains an additional important factor decreasing vaccination rollout in LAC countries and even further, in the whole Global South. Regarding patients with severe mental illness in LAC, and worldwide, it is paramount to include them in priority groups for immunization and monitor their vaccination coverage through public health indicators.
RESUMO
In this brief report we present the case of a 53 year old man with a very debilitating Generalized Anxiety Disorder successfully treated with tranylcypromine. After several failed treatment attempts following international guidelines recommendations over the course of one year and a half, tranylcypromine was prescribed which led to effective and sustained remission of anxiety symptoms for this patient. We also briefly explore treatment options for resistant cases of generalized anxiety disorder, given the major negative impacts of untreated GAD in a person's daily functioning and quality of life.