Whooping cough vaccines are disappearing from pharmaceutical warehouses

The rapid spread of whooping cough and the abundance of information about the consequences of the infection in the media has intensified the search for vaccines against the contagious disease.

The “Bootrix” vaccine is the one that is used for reimmunization against diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough in persons over 4 years of age, explained in one of “Pharmacy 36, 6”. Demand is still not high, but there are inquiries. Upon request, the vaccine is delivered within the day, explained the pharmacists from the Saturday market pharmacy. The limit price is BGN 33.38 and it is still in stock.

Most pharmacies have not stocked it due to a lack of interest so far, a reporter’s check found. So far, it has not been necessary to maintain stock in pharmacies due to the fact that it is on the mandatory Immunization Calendar and is administered free of charge, according to him, by personal physicians.

However, pharmacies from the “Framar” pharmaceutical chain report an increased strong demand for the vaccine.

“Demand has been huge in recent days and it is increasingly difficult to find vaccines in the warehouse network. No one expected such a sharp interest. I really hope that there will be a refill soon and that this shortage will be overcome quickly. The price is fixed and people should not worry that the increased demand will affect it,” the head of the chain’s marketing department, Ivaylo Tonchev, told Maritza. “Out of all our 50 pharmacies, we currently only have stock in three. I imagine that by the end of the day they will run out as well. However, people should not self-medicate or look for a way to administer the vaccines themselves without consulting a doctor.” , warns the manager, who is convinced that mandatory vaccines must be administered on time.

Tests to detect the presence of whooping cough are not available at pharmacies, but can be done at any laboratory in the city.

“We do PSR – tests and the result is ready in two days. Separately, we also do blood tests for toxins because, if the treatment is delayed, the expressed symptoms already show that they have started to be released,” explained Dr. Blagovesta Pencheva from Ramus laboratories. She explained that in each of their laboratories the price of PSR – the test is BGN 60. Antibodies are of two types and the examination of each of them is done with blood tests, and their price is BGN 30 for each of them, explained Dr. Pencheva.