Walter Ricciardi, a consultant to the Ministry of Health, spoke about the Omicron variant and said that some optimism has come from Israel
Walter Ricciardi, scientific advisor to the Minister of Health, was a guest of the show ‘Che tempo che fa’ on Rai3. The expert spoke of the variant Omicron, also emphasizing the risks that are run at school and the opportunity to vaccinate children.
Omicron variant, Ricciardi cites data from Israel: “Positive news”
Ricciardi explained that the WHO has defined the Omicron variant as a “variant of concern“, Adding however that it is“ too early to draw conclusions ”.
However, there seem to be some negative elements, such as “the great ability to spread. In South Africa, in less than 2 weeks, it went from 1% to 30%: a higher contagiousness than the Delta ”.
Secondly, “there are many mutations: it is not necessarily a negative fact, but when there are many, the probability that there is a problem increases “.
Not just bad news. Among the positive elements, Ricciardi said, the fact that the Omicron variant does not seem to have “greater gravity, also in Israel tests continue to diagnose it, so there is a likelihood that vaccines will continue to protect us“, And therefore that they are not punctured. However, it takes time to unbalance: “We will know more in the coming weeks”.
Omicron variant, but not only: the school problem
Ricciardi then turned the spotlight on the school problem: “More attention is needed on the school, in this moment it is the weak point because the children are not vaccinated: they have to stay spaced, in the classrooms there is also a problem of ventilation ”.
“All schools in Germany and the United Kingdom – he added – they have carbon dioxide detectors, which measure the saturation of the air. In our classrooms they are very rare. There are some schools in which the Local Health Authorities cannot even take the tests and the class is sent in dad “.
This is why it is important to vaccinate even the smallest ones: “This is an epoch-making step to decrease the circulation of the virus“.
The anti Covid pill after Christmas: Ricciardi’s opinion
Finally, Ricciardi was solicited on the Christmas: “It is difficult to make predictions, but if we continue to increase vaccinations, I am optimistic. I believe that the possibility of having holidays that are not completely free, but quite serene will prevail ”.
And on the hypothesis of the arrival of one pill anti Covid after Christmas: “No virus control strategy can be based on a drug. Vaccination is the solution, only then can we move forward with confidence. The therapeutic front cures a person when he has already had the disease, and this is a disease that can end well or badly, no one knows what happens in the long run. However, it is good to have drugs to cure Covid “.
Virgil News | 29-11-2021 06:30
Photo source: ANSA
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