Don't get complacent because Omicron is less virulent, says DG Health
Stresses the need to be mindful of vulnerable categories
The positive numbers are on the rise because the Omicron variant is highly transmissible. If one person in a family catches COVID-19, there is a high probability that all other family members will get it, said a top health official on Wednesday.
However, due to the fact that people are fully-vaccinated which means two doses of a vaccine plus the booster, the symptoms are mild and usually last only around 3- 4 days, said the Director-General (DG) of Health Services, Dr. Asela Gunawardena in a wide- ranging interview with the Sunday Times.
Looking back at the recent past, he said that until January, Sri Lanka was showing a downward trend in the number of positives but it has changed. N ow the numbers are rising. Obviously, it is due to the highly transmissible Omicron though there is less virulence. Some of the people who become positive are asymptomatic (without symptoms) or mildly symptomatic. The symptoms include a sore throat, nasal congestion, sometimes one or two days of fever along with body aches and pains.
“If you rest during that period and take plenty of fluids, most of the symptoms will get cleared in five days. This is applicable for Omicron but not for Delta,” he said.
When asked whether it is advisable to give the nod to contacts to go to work (as stated in the Health Ministry’s Exit Guidelines), the DG said that this is the practice being followed by many countries in the world.
“If one person in a family tests positive, if the others are fully vaccinated they can go to work. If, however, one of them develops symptoms, he/ she has to do an RT- PCR or Rapid Antigen Test (RAT). If the test is positive, then that person too should stay home and refrain from going to work. What is different from earlier practices is that those days if one person in a family turned positive, the whole family was quarantined,” he said.
Stressing the need for all eligible people not only to get the two doses of a vaccine but also the booster, the DG urged people not to get complacent. The likely reason for people’s complacency in getting the booster may be the false sense of security they have got from the reduction in cases and reduction in deaths at the end of last year. Such a reduction would be due to primary vaccination ( two doses) and the people may have become lackadaisical that the situation was good and the disease was very mild.
Earlier, during the first and second waves, they would have also been worried about being taken to far-away treatment centres and quickly taken the jab. Now that mild and asymptomatic people can remain at home, people may be more relaxed and not wanting to take the booster, he said.
He urged people to consider the fact that even though Omicron may be causing mild disease, there is severe disease in vulnerable groups of which the over-60s are one segment.
There are 2.4 million people in the over-60 age group
Only about 1.5 million of this 2.4 million have taken the booster This means that about 43% of this group is still unvaccinated. This is also the group which has many co- morbidities including diabetes, hypertension and kidney disease. So, they are highly vulnerable.
Around 77% of the deaths are among this over-60 age group
Around 22% of the deaths are among those in the age- group 30- 59 years and 1% from the balance
From the total deaths, around 81% are recorded from hospitals, with home deaths being about 13%. Around 5% die on the way to hospital or at the point of admission
From the total number of deaths, 81% have co- morbidities
Referring to home- deaths, Dr. Gunawardena explains that these generally form the very old group, usually above 80, some of whom are also bedridden. With the spread of Omicron outside, the virus has crept into such people’s homes.
With co- morbidities being a high-risk factor for death if a person gets the virus, it is of paramount importance for everyone including the elderly to get the booster, he said, explaining that an analysis of the deaths underscores that about 67% were not vaccinated.
He points out that:
Full vaccination is two doses and the booster
If a person has taken two doses and not the booster after three months, that person is not fully vaccinated and is considered ‘unvaccinated’
If a person has taken only one dose but not the second and the booster that person is also considered ‘unvaccinated’ Quoting several studies and the advice of the World Health Organization ( WHO), the DG says that the United Kingdom which reported reduced vaccine effectiveness after six months, has found that the booster “dramatically” increases protection against hospitalization to 88%. That means you are protected 88% if you are fully vaccinated. America’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC) data show that the older age groups are at a higher risk of hospitalization, while South African data indicate a high risk of severe disease among those aged 60 and above. So even with Omicron, when we look at those 60 and above, there is danger. This is why we are urging them to get the booster.
The likely reason for people’s complacency in getting the booster may be the false sense of security they have got from the reduction in cases and reduction in deaths at the end of last year.