“Indoor anti Covid masks must be worn. Otherwise the risk that the number of infections will increase exponentially is very high “. Experts have no doubts: the omicron 2 variant has a high contagiousness and therefore the situation could get out of hand.
“It is beyond question that if the epidemic remains at the levels we are observing now – he underlines Pier Luigi Lopalco, Professor of Hygiene at the University of Salento – eliminating a measure that has so far been effective would be really dangerous. The viral circulation is still very active, it does not take long to imagine that if we reduce the precautions the number of cases increases. Until this last wave dies down, I would be cautious about removing the obligation. It is a measure that basically costs nothing, certainly does not impact the economy. Wearing it, at most it only involves a little discomfort. But it is necessary to protect us ”.
Also Fabrizio Pregliasco, researcher of General and Applied Hygiene at the University of Milan, replies without hesitation: “The end of the state of emergency is welcome – he says – but we need to adapt the measures in a gradual perspective. The data we have tells us this is not the time to let our guard down. Let’s not forget that the gathering indoors, among all the factors that contribute to the spread of the virus, is the one with the greatest risk. The omicron 2 variant, moreover, has blown us away. We did not expect this trend of the epidemic curve. Now the need for flexibility must prevail over arrangements already made. We still need a lot of caution ”.
Without masks, in short, the risk that a new wave will start again is not so remote. “Omicron 2 has over 50 mutations that make it different from the previous virus – he remarks Roberto Tail, Director of Infectious Diseases of the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome – The possibility of reinfection is also not uncommon. So, faced with a virus that is transmitted so easily and taking into account that a part of the population is not yet vaccinated, I would certainly keep the masks indoors. It is basically a small sacrifice. Of course, we cannot live in a continuous emergency, but we must adapt the measures in a progressive way. Let’s not forget that the ffp2 masks protect from infection for at least about 80 percent. Without protection, the risk of contracting the covid would be maximum “.
The new variant, in short, does not make you rest assured. “With omicron 2 it is not yet time to remove the masks – cut short Massimo Ciccozzi, director of the Medical Statistics and Molecular Epidemiology Unit of the Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome – We do not know how much the number of infections can rise if we eliminate this precautionary measure. Certainly, the omicron 1-2-3 variants have a contagiousness equal to that of measles. This means that indoors without a mask an asymptomatic person can infect 16 to 18 people at the same time. Let’s not forget that the number of reinfections continues to increase. And even if with omicron the symptoms are often mild, those who become infected must still remain in isolation. Therefore, he does not work and does not earn. If the infections increase dramatically, even the economic problem, in addition to the health one, would not be insignificant “.