Summer wave of Covid, the number of positives increases. “In recent weeks, several countries in the European region have reported an increase in the number of infections”. This is the picture drawn by the Regional Office of the World Health Organization (WHO) for Europe. How to protect yourself? Even considering wearing a mask in certain particularly risky situationssuggests the agency among other indications.
It is “a timely reminder that while Covid is fading into distant memory for millions of people, the virus has not disappeared. The percentage of patients with respiratory illnesses found to have Sars-CoV-2 in primary care has increased 5-fold in the last 8 weeks and the percentage of patients hospitalized has also grown. While the absolute number of cases is lower than the winter wave that peaked in December 2023, Covid infections in the region this summer are still causing hospitalizations and deaths.”
WHO advises: “Wear a mask”
“To reduce the chances of infection, especially now that Covid is circulating more, consider wearing masks in crowded indoor spaces. A disposable mask such as the N95”, similar to the Ffp2 in filtering capacity, “offers the best protection”, indicates WHO Europe. “If you have to interact with someone who has Covid, whether a family member or otherwise, using a mask becomes particularly important”. The agency made the point on the occasion of the publication of the results of a study that showed how anti-Covid vaccines have saved “over 1.6 million lives” from when they were made available in December 2020 until March 2023.
The increase in the number of Covid cases reported this summer, WHO Europe analyzes, “could be explained by holiday travel, mass events such as major sports tournaments and music festivals, and less competition from concomitant respiratory diseases such as influenza. Getting an updated Covid vaccine remains an extremely effective tool to reduce both hospitalizations and deaths among people at high risk”, such as “older or immunosuppressed people, people with multiple pre-existing conditions, pregnant women and healthcare workers who could be easily exposed” to the virus. The vaccine “also reduces the chances of developing long Covid”.
Unlike seasonal influenza, WHO Europe continues, “COVID-19 circulates all year round. Until this pattern changes, the region could experience multiple waves each year, which puts strain on health systems and increases the likelihood that people, particularly the most vulnerable, will get sick”. Among the suggestions on how to contain the risk of contagion, the importance of washing your hands regularly is recalled, an action that “continues to be an effective infection control measure, both against Sars-CoV-2 and many other viruses and bacteria. Taking these types of precautions is particularly important for vulnerable people who are at higher risk of serious outcomes if they become infected”.
In case of symptoms, such as fever, cough, fatigue or shortness of breath, the agency continues, “a Covid test should be done, if available – the European Regional Office further indicates – to confirm whether there is infection and to understand the level of risk for themselves and others”. Finally, if you are at high risk of serious outcomes from Covid, “you could be entitled to antiviral drugs”.
“In Europe almost a quarter of cases from KP.3.1.1, the most common variant”
What are the Covid variants of the summer 2024 wave underway in Europe? “Globally, JN.1 and its descendants, which include KP.2 and KP.3, the so-called FLiRT variants, remain the most reported – underlines the regional office of the World Health Organization -. Recently, KP.3 has generated “a ‘daughter’, “KP.3.1.1, which is now the most common circulating variant in Europe, accounting for almost a quarter of the viruses sequenced” in this area. “It has been detected in several countries including Italy, France, Spain and the United Kingdom”. “Having high-quality surveillance is essential for public health authorities to initiate rapid and decisive action to protect populations from potentially more virulent strains of the disease”.
The circulating variants, cited by WHO Europe, “belong to the same family (sublineage) as Sars-CoV-2 and, although they are not thought to be more serious, they are more transmissible”. Current vaccines “are effective in preventing severe disease and death among people infected with the new variants and studies are underway to determine the duration of protection provided by booster doses”, the agency informs. “We are continuing to monitor the activity of Sars-CoV-2 and its impact, as well as that of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV),” assures Margaux Meslé, a WHO Europe expert who authored a study in which it is estimated that vaccines have saved more than 1.6 million lives in the region from when they were made available (in December 2020) until March 2023.
As for the future of Covid-19, while the region is experiencing spikes in cases during the summer, “It is impossible to predict how the virus will behave for the rest of 2024“, concludes WHO Europe. “Multiple waves may be possible”. The countries in the area have meanwhile moved from emergency management to “sustainable, integrated and long-term” management, adapting to the evolving situation. The “fundamental role of surveillance in understanding disease patterns and trends, together with monitoring the unknown threat of a new variant”, remains firm.
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