As China and a few other countries are seeing a sudden rise in COVID-19 cases, World Health Organisation has notified that there are several reasons for the recent surge, including the relaxation of Covid related curbs. WHO further warned that in the coming days, we are likely to more Covid waves in the coming days owing to the fact that more than 500 Omicron subvariants are currently circulating. It also said that currently, the biggest concern is the rise in ‘severe diseases’, especially in China.
What is the reason for the recent surge in China?
Explaining the cause behind the recent surge, WHO official Maria Van Kerkhove, in a recent interview, said, there is a lot of reason that we are seeing this surge in China and also elsewhere. As you know a lot of restrictions have been eased around the world and Omicron's latest variant of concern is the most transmissible variant we have seen so far. And since more than 500 Omicron subvariants are circulating across the world, we will see more surges in the coming days.
“We have seen a decline in the impact of COVID-19, that is because immunity across the population is increasing. Now, clearly what we need to do in China and all other countries is to increase vaccination coverage among those who are most at risk, people who are over the age of 60 and those who are immunocompromised, and the frontline workers."
Check full interview here:
What is the biggest concern right now?
Elaborating on this, Van Kerkhove said, the big concern that we have with China is an increase in severe disease. What we need to ensure is not only that the vaccination coverage is increasing but also need to optimise clinical care for those who need it, making the best use of beds and available medicines.
How to deal with the current situation?
One of the critical things that we have seen with Omicron is that each of the sub-lineages has a significant growth advantage. Each of these has some level of immune escape and we do see a similar level of severity (Omicron can cause a spectrum of diseases, from asymptomatic infections to all the way to death). But the good news that our tools are still working, Van Kerkhove adds.