The curve descends very slowly albeit steadily. Were the red and orange areas not enough?
“It’s the fault of the variants. The English one is more transmissible than the others, such as the Brazilian one, concentrated between Umbria, Lazio and Tuscany. The interventions are keeping them at bay but with difficulty. In January, these mutations began to take over across Europe and almost completely replaced the original strains of the virus. It was more difficult to contain the wave ».
–
Giovanni Rezza, Director of Prevention of the Ministry of Health, member of the scientific technical committee Cts does not minimize the criticalities. And he encourages: «Thanks to the vaccines we will get out of it».
–
Intensive care overflowing, why?
“We expected it. It is the course of epidemics. First the RT increases, then the incidence of cases, then the occupation of hospital beds and finally, unfortunately, there is the increase in deaths. We are at the halfway point. As Rt and incidence drop, resuscitations begin to break free, casualties drop. Now the health system is suffering and is paying for the accumulation of cases in the past few weeks».
–
Is it correct to speak of the third wave?
«The Spanish pandemic of 1918 was marked by two natural waves. Those of the Sars-CoV-2 pandemic have been corrected by human interventions such as the lockdown. The first phase was that of February-March 2020, concentrated in some regions of the North. There was no natural peak, but interrupted by very hard interventions. A summer phase followed in which cases had dropped to the point of being able to identify the positives returning from vacation. Then the second wave, with the resumption of autumn activity. The Christmas speeches have slowed down the incidence again. We are now in the third phase, supported by the variant ».
–
Are we going towards beauty?
“Yup. In addition to the three vaccines now available, a fourth will be added in mid-April and another two close to summer. Between April and June we will have tens of millions of doses. If you immunize a large part of the population you can contain the infections and lighten the burden on the health system “.
–
When will we stop feeling at the mercy of the virus?
“The initial model said that by vaccinating 240,000 people a day, we would get out of it in 7-13 months. Now we are at 300 thousand inoculations per day, already a good result. By doubling, in a few months we will have protected the frail, the pressure on hospitals will decrease and we will be able to immunize young people, amplifiers of the epidemic. The most optimistic view is to reach the so-called herd immunity vaccinating 67% of the population. The example of Israel, back to normal, is at hand ”.
–
Why not immediately vaccinate the 20-40 year olds who, according to a US study, are the virus reservoir? They don’t get sick and they spread it.
“The best results are obtained by protecting the frail because mortality is reduced”.
–
The AstraZeneca vaccine in the dock. The truth?
“The British have shown that the benefits far outweigh the risks. But the rare adverse events of thrombosis which led other countries to stop vaccinations under the age of 55-60 should not be underestimated. It depends on the European agency Ema. If he were to pronounce himself differently, Aifa would take note of it, and everything that needs to be done will be done. We are on a line of extreme prudence and protection ».
–
Can anyone who has had the first AstraZeneca dose change the booster?
“There is no reason to change the vaccination card. The British are doing several trials to study combinations with different vaccines. It is normal that the patterns can be changed. Some flexibility is already foreseen in the national strategic plan. When there is an abundance of doses, strategies can be adapted to reality ».
–
–
April 4, 2021 (change April 4, 2021 | 07:15)
© REPRODUCTION RESERVED
–
