As more and more people in the country are receiving Covid-19 with an Indian Covid R rate or a 1.44 reproductive rate, questions are being raised as to whether we can get herd immunity. So are we?
Experts are straining the swaths of Indian populations, young and old, struggling with Covid-19. Exposure to SARS CoV 2 infection is higher than ever with a reproduction rate of a shocking 1.44% of the population, meaning one infected patient will infect one and a half people. But are we on the way to herd immunity?
WHAT IS STOVE IMMUNITY?
Herd immunity is present when a sufficiently high proportion of the population has been vaccinated against a disease or has been infected with a disease and has developed antibodies against it. Any infected person will then have the opportunity to infect less susceptible people, which will stop the spread.
WHAT DO SERO SURVEYS SHOW?
Sero surveys in various cities in India have shown that they are at high risk of infection. However, experts believe that this does not result in herd immunity. Delhi had shown extreme exposure to Covid-19 to the extent that it was safe to say the population was reaching herd immunity, but it did not.
“The Sero survey that was carried out showed that 50-60% of the population had developed antibodies. Using this logic, one could have said that the population has developed herd immunity, but that is clearly not the case, ”said Dr. Randeep Guleria, director of AIIMS, told India Today TV.
“We need to do sero surveys with a pinch of salt,” he added.
WHAT DOES ICMR’S LAST SERO SURVEY SHOW?
In fact, the latest Sero survey conducted in India shows that more than 21% of the Indian adult population has been exposed to Covid-19.
The Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) found that 21.4% of the 28,589 people surveyed over the age of 18 showed exposure to the virus. But it was also added that a large part of the population is still susceptible to Covid-19. This means that we are still far from herd immunity.
“Herd immunity is currently an elusive concept. Most countries have seen several waves, some even 3 or 4 waves. What we need to make sure is that we have a combat-ready workforce who can step up their response if a wave hits the country. Vaccination is the only weapon and we should not assume that people will receive herd immunity after infection, ”said Professor Giridhar Babu, epidemiologist with the Public Health Foundation of India.
Worst of all, the virus is changing shape and experts believe there should be no herd immunity reliance on widespread infections. This could lead to re-infection, but it is “not that common in India,” said Dr. Randeep Guleria to India Today.
إرسال تعليق