The technical lead of the WHO’s health emergencies programme predicts that the next variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus will be more contagious as they have to “compete” with those already raging.
Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Emergency Medical Program, predicts that there will be many new treatments for COVID-19 and subsequent variants this year. . . . SARS-CoV-2 will be more contagious because they have to “surpass” the currently raging variants.
According to Van Kerkhove, the theory that the virus will continue to mutate into milder strains, making people less susceptible to severe COVID-19 than previous variants, is due to insufficient research. Prove it to me.
In addition, another COVID-19 outbreak involving a new variant could also avoid the antibody “barrier” created by vaccination, reducing the effectiveness of existing vaccines. .
Therefore, Ms Van Kerkhove stressed that people still need to continue to take safety precautions.
[Development of masks that emit light when SARS-CoV-2 is detected]
Meanwhile, WHO’s emergencies director Dr Mike Ryan said the virus will continue to mutate until it develops into a stable form, and hopes the outbreak will taper off as transmission increases. spread. High infection rate. low transmission. It is more likely in the future and may be seasonal or only affect vulnerable groups.
However, he also stressed that COVID-19 is unpredictable, so world health officials need to continue monitoring the disease as the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to mutate to be able to apply strategies. new comb. Take appropriate precautions to minimize possible future damage.
Now, U.S. drug company Pfizer and German biotech company BioNTech have begun testing specific vaccines against variants of Omicron amid concerns that current vaccines won’t protect against the disease. Possibility of infection and disease. This variant was discovered about 2 months ago with significantly fewer complications.
A booster shot of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is effective in preventing up to 90 percent of the risk of hospitalization for Omicron from 14 days after birth, according to a study published last week by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The third injection.
Meanwhile, research published earlier this month by the UK’s Health Safety Agency showed that the first booster shot reduced symptoms of infection caused by the Omicron variant by 75% within two to four weeks. After treatment. injection.
However, studies have shown that booster injections reduce effectiveness to 45% to 50% within about 10 weeks after injection.