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Marius Strioga, an oncologist at the National Cancer Institute (IMI), says the only key to success against the Delta strain is vaccination. Therefore, vaccination should not be delayed until the fall, when the altered virus may already be rampant.
Then the lives of Lithuanians would be in danger again and the health system would remember the nightmare experienced during previous waves of the virus.
Points out that 96 percent. all new cases of coronavirus disease detected in the UK are Delta strains.
According to M. Tririoga, this clearly shows that it is capable of ousting the Alpha (former “British”) variety in the competitive fight.
“If there is a journey between us and the countries where that variety is spreading, your cases will definitely increase with us. All the more so since the Delta variety reaches 60 percent. it is more contagious than the Alpha strain and is related to the 2.2-fold increase in the need for hospital treatment ”, warned M. Trio on the” Noticias del día “program” Radio Žinių “.
Vaccines can protect
According to the oncologist, vaccination will be necessary to prevent a new wave of diseases. The Pfizer vaccine protects against symptomatic disease caused by the Delta strain by 88% and AstraZeneca by 67%.
At that time, two doses of the Pfizer vaccine prevented 96% of hospitalization. reliability, AstraZeneca 92%
For example, the Pfizer vaccine only protects 36% of Delta symptoms after the first dose and AstraZeneca 30%.
“If we want to avoid a plethora of patients in hospitals, congested healthcare systems and possibly more deaths, the only key is vaccination. Don’t wait for fall to arrive for the variety to arrive here and start to rage.
Protection should be in place by then. Available vaccines provide protection against the COVID-19 disease, ”said MM Tririoga.
True, this requires a sufficiently high amount of antibodies. Therefore, the need for a third dose of the vaccine six months after vaccination is now increasingly discussed.
Some members of the Board of Health Experts are of the opinion that clinical trial data should be obtained to ensure that vaccinated and relapsed people do not become infected with the coronavirus.
However, M.Strioga doesn’t think we should wait. “I suggest not waiting for the data from those clinical trials and deciding that we will give the third dose of the vaccine nine months after the first.
The immune response may be sufficient for some, but we will not harm people with it. Perhaps even prematurely, we will improve the immune response and increase the antibody titer. However, it can help prevent the spread of strains ”, says the oncologist.
He explained that higher levels of antibodies are crucial in the fight against the more aggressive strains of the virus, since the amount of antibodies in this case can compensate for their lower effectiveness against the virus.
Strioga says that a large number of people in the UK contract the Delta virus because the pause between vaccine injections has been extended to vaccinate as many people as possible. Many Britons managed to get vaccinated with a single dose. They lack protection against the Delon strain of coronavirus.
He recalled that the Pfizer vaccine only protects 36% of AstraZeneca symptoms after the first dose and 30% of AstraZeneca symptoms.
“It means that people who are vaccinated with a single dose have significantly less protection. Two doses are needed to protect against these varieties,” explains M. Strioga.
The disease lay and vaccinated?
It confirmed that several dozen cases of vaccination deaths from disease caused by the Delta strain had been reported in the UK.
“Isolated cases and people who received both doses of the vaccine died of COVID-19. Yes, it is possible. This was confirmed by official authorities.
Of course, the data that still needs to be examined is important. When did they get the second dose? What was your antibody titer? ”, Says M. Tririoga, adding that in these individual cases the protection of the vaccines may have already diminished.
When will the Delta variety be extended in Lithuania?
The oncologist emphasizes that the Delta strain coronavirus “will not buy a ticket by itself” and will not return to Lithuania. Only people can bring it to the country.
M.Strioga cautions that the distribution variety does not necessarily need many import cases. A person who has returned from abroad and has been suddenly lost on the Lithuanian coast, inadvertently, could infect many others. Additionally, the Delta variety has already been observed to be more resistant to higher air temperatures, so hot weather may not protect it from spread.
It would be a mistake to assume that Lithuanians who have acquired immunity are already sufficient to protect themselves from the virus. After all, the illness after vaccination is almost always milder.
“There is no doubt that vaccinated people will get sick more easily, they are much less likely to die,” says the oncologist.
Recently, no new COVID-19 cases have been detected in Lithuania per day. According to M. Tririoga, such low figures could persist for another month, since specialists’ calculations show that it may take about 2 months for the Delta variety to take root in Europe.
The pandemic is not over
Former European Health Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis warns that people who decide to travel to distant lands during the summer season can bring dangerous variants of the virus.
“When traveling, you have to think that you can bring a Delta or even a new variant of the virus, which is not yet known, but is already circulating.
The message is that the pandemic is not over yet and the current level of vaccination throughout the European region does not ensure the possibility of preventing the introduction of varieties, ”says V. Andriukaitis.
According to him, the recommendations on wearing masks, maintaining social distances, frequent disinfection and maintaining hygiene remain valid even in summer conditions.
He also asks for vaccinations. “It must be understood that with a low level of vaccination, the security guarantees will be scarce”, warns V. Andriukaitis.
