Covid-19 is ‘with us indefinitely’ like the flu, but ‘monitoring is essential’, virologist stresses

COVID-19 “with us indefinitely” Like the flu, but a Monitoring this virus is necessary.announced on Saturday March 18 in franceinfo Bruno Lina, virologist at the University Hospital of Lyon, member of Covars (Committee for Monitoring and Anticipating Health Risks), while the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that Covid -19 will soon It can be compared to the threat of seasonal flu.

franceinfo: Can Covid be compared to the flu?

Bruno Lina: We have a virus that will continue to exist and the best analogy we can make with another respiratory virus that causes epidemics and has a significant impact on health is influenza. There are nuances that need to be made. First, the prevalence of coronavirus may not be the same as that of influenza that is present in winter and absent in summer. There, we don’t know if the coronavirus will be around all the time with occasional outbreaks. The second point is that there is a very important difference between influenza and the Corona virus, which is that we know that an important part is what causes the infection with the Corona virus. Covids made long. Therefore, this particular dimension must be taken into account.

Should we continue to monitor the evolution of Covid-19?

This is essential work that we must continue to do. Monitoring for this virus is essential. We saw how quickly it developed during the first epidemic waves of the pandemic. Today, it seems to have entered a slightly wiser phase, and we still have the evolution of the virus. Unlike the Alpha or Omicron variants, these are alternatives, not a new epidemic wave. However, these alternatives must be monitored because some of these viruses may have certain characteristics.

What are the consequences of this development for vaccination and barrier gestures?

Barrier gestures, they should not only be targeted against coronavirus, they are useful against all respiratory viruses, and so we should have the natural reaction, when we get sick, to wear a mask and wash our hands often. When vaccinating, we must try to adapt to the risks of circulating the virus and re-vaccinate the most vulnerable.

Will the covid virus finally go away?

No, Covid is with us indefinitely. It is very likely that during the late 19th century, around 1890, a coronavirus pandemic, OC43, was observed, and this virus still exists.