The rise in the number of Covid-19 cases in China, following the easing of the strict Covid Zero policy adopted by the government over the past two years, has ignited a wake-up call in the international community. Authorities fear that the high circulation of the coronavirus in Asia will lead to a new global outbreak.
Although there is a real risk of the emergence of new variants of the virus, specialists consulted by the metropolises do not believe that they can lead us to a scenario similar to that experienced at the beginning of the pandemic. Today, we have vaccines, available therapies and knowledge about the disease.
“Even with this large number of infections in China, I do not believe that there will be a general increase in deaths in the world or that we will go back to square one”, evaluates the professor at the Institute of Biology at UnB, specialist in virus mutations, Bergmann Ribeiro.
Researcher Leonardo Bastos, from InfoGripe, from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), agrees. “After three years of the pandemic, we are much better prepared. So, for the beginning, we are not going back, but we have to continue to carefully monitor the evolution of Covid-19, not only in China, but throughout the world ”, he says.
Bastos highlights as positive indicators the advance in vaccination coverage rates and the large number of people previously infected, which reduces the chances of progression to more serious conditions in case of infection or reinfection.
Monitoring
The most recent data available on the Gisaid website – an online genetic sequencing bank that gathers information from around the world – show that the new wave of Covid-19 in China is driven by sublines of the Omicron variant, with a higher prevalence of cases associated with the BF subvariants. 7 in the Beijing and Fujian region, and BA.5.2 in multiple Chinese cities.
Representatives of World Health Organization (WHO) and Chinese authorities met on Friday (12/30) to discuss the current pandemic situation and the increase in cases in the country.
The WHO has again called for the regular sharing of specific, real-time data on the epidemiological situation. The information includes more data from genetic sequencing of test samples and on the impact of the disease, which involves the number of hospitalizations, admissions and deaths in intensive care units (ICU).
The entity emphasized the importance of monitoring and publishing data to help the country and the global community to formulate accurate risk assessments and organize effective responses.
“To make a comprehensive risk assessment of the Covid-19 situation in China, the WHO needs more detailed information,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Twitter on Thursday (29/12). ).
border restrictions
With the increase in cases of Covid-19 in China, the United States, the United Kingdom and Italy announced the requirement of presenting a negative test for travelers who came from the Asian country starting this month. In the US, for example, the voucher will be charged to all passengers aged 2 years or older.
The Fiocruz researcher condemns the measure. In his assessment, it does not guarantee the containment of the virus and contributes to the xenophobic behavior of the population. Bastos recalls that the strategy proved ineffective in past waves, when the coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China, or when the Gamma, Delta and Omicron variants were identified, respectively, in Brazil, India and South Africa.
“Policies to contain travelers only from places where the virus or variants were identified did not prevent their spread across the planet. In other words, this policy of restricting travelers from China is prejudiced and only foments xenophobia. If you want to adopt a system that requires a negative test for travelers, let it be for everyone, and not just for those who come from country A or B”, considers Bastos.
The expert believes that countries should invest in epidemiological and genomic surveillance. According to him, it is essential to strengthen the analytical capacity for monitoring cases, hospitalizations and deaths to understand the dynamics of an outbreak in progress and act quickly to reduce damage.
“Coping with other infectious diseases can also benefit from this. That is, once the beginning of an epidemic is identified, it will be possible to quickly adopt effective measures to face it, as in the case of Covid-19”, ponders Bastos.
In addition, the population must pay attention to the use of good masks in closed places, increase testing and comply with isolation. Governments must prepare the health system to receive serious cases, in addition to carefully assessing the scenario, evaluating the possibility of canceling classes or events if the scenario requires such measures.
Despite the easing of the rules for the use of masks and the drop in cases of Covid registered in Brazil, it is not yet time to give up care to contain the virus, especially with so many variants in circulation.Kilito Chan/ Getty Images
Photo-man-wearing-mask-and-coughing.jpgAccording to a study released in December 2021 by the Max Planck Institute in Germany, the mask acts as a shield against Covid and helps contain outbreaks of other viruses that may have epidemic potential, such as H3N2RUNSTUDIO/ Getty Images
***Photo-women-wearing-masks.jpgAccording to the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), when an infected person uses a mask such as PFF2 and a healthy person who is close to him also uses a PFF2, the chance of contagion would be only 0.1%. However, not all protective masks are equally effective.Boy_Anupong/ Getty Images
***Photo-mask-N95-Covid-effectivenessAccording to researchers from the University of São Paulo (USP), who evaluated 227 different masks and whose study was published in the journal Aerosol Science and Technology, filtration of PFF2 (also known as N95) prevents the passage of 98% of particles from 60 to 300 nm. Therefore, PFF2 is the most suitable protective maskDon MacKinnon/Getty Images
***Photo-surgical-mask-Covid.jpgAlso according to the study, which analyzed the ability of accessories to prevent the virus from being breathed or expelled, surgical masks were second in terms of protection. This is because they had 89% filtering capacityKilito Chan/ Getty Images
***Photo-mask-PFF2-Covid.jpgSlightly more resistant than a surgical mask, the PFF1 is lined with a filter that repels microorganisms. However, the cost-effectiveness of the product may not be so interesting, since it is disposable and its price is not the cheapest.Grace Cary/Getty Images
***Photo-mask-cotton-Covid.jpgThe famous cotton masks, however, showed the lowest effectiveness against particle retention, between 20% and 60%. This is because the fabric used to make the garment leaves more space between the threads and reduces protection against the virus.Ganlaya Tieghom / EyeEm / Getty Images
***Photo-woman-wearing-mask-and-mopping-alcohol-in-hands.jpgHowever, according to the researchers, despite the effectiveness that the masks have, they will be of no use if they are not used correctly. Adjusting the mask to the face, avoiding gaps in the contact of the accessory with the nose, chin and cheeks and changing the piece during the day is essential to guarantee protection against Covid and any other virus.hiphotos35/ Getty Images
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