Immunologist Kryuchkov: the number of seriously ill COVID-19 increased in proportion to the infectivity Kryuchkov. According to him, one cannot talk about a decline in the pandemic, paying attention only to the symptoms of the majority of those infected with COVID-19, the specialist said in an interview with Lenta.ru.
Earlier, Deputy Director for Clinical and Analytical Work of the Central Research Institute of Epidemiology of Rospotrebnadzor, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor Natalya Pshenichnaya said that the symptoms of coronavirus are increasingly reminiscent of influenza and ARVI. The vast majority of COVID-19 patients suffer from runny nose and sore throat, she said. At the same time, the loss of smell and taste faded into the background, the specialist noted. She emphasized that in 30-50 percent of cases of infection, diarrhea and other problems with the gastrointestinal tract began to occur at the onset of the disease.
Wheat also added that coronavirus infection can multiply in the intestines of a sick person even after recovery. At the same time, she said that in some it can be found even months after the disease.
More infected, more deaths
Kryuchkov agreed that work has appeared in the medical field showing that patients with COVID-19 are less common began to lose their sense of smell, as well as the fact that the symptoms of SARS began to come to the fore. However, he stressed, this is not an indicator and not a reason for loud statements.
“All the same, loss of smell occurs, as well as loss or change in taste. The ratio just got a little lost. We cannot say exactly how significant this is. But this certainly does not directly affect severity. That is, the severity of the course of the disease, all other things being equal, did not decrease, but rather could even increase. The point is not that a person loses his sense of smell, but what happens next, ”note Kryuchkov.
He explained how the rate of infectiousness changes the ratio of people with mild, moderate and severe illness. “At the population level, it works at the next level. Our delta line is highly infectious. If the first variant of the coronavirus was transmitted from one person to three, then the current variants are transmitted from one to eight, and the last – AY.242 – to nine. It has become easier to get infected, there are more cases of infection, more seriously ill patients. That is, when only one parameter changes, we have an absolute increase in the number of people with severe disease and deaths. It is clear that the more people at the entrance, the more at the exit. The lack of loss of smell in humans does not mean that the delta line flows more easily, “the scientist explained.
The immunologist added that this infectiousness increases due to changes in the properties of the virus. In some cases, this leads to an increase in individual risks, the medic added.
“It used to be the same, the overwhelming majority of the coronavirus disease was either asymptomatic or easy. Now nothing has changed. Many people think that there is nothing wrong with the coronavirus. Well, they got sick and nothing special, some minor consequences, but this has an uncritical effect on the quality of life. Not dead and good. Indeed, only 15 percent of people infected with the disease are moderate or severe. There are fewer of these people. When a minority suffers from the disease, and the majority bypasses all the consequences, one gets the feeling that it is not dangerous. But we see a combination of infectiousness and lethality, “the immunologist said.
He also added that in the current conditions, any patient's condition other than the norm should be perceived by the doctor and the patient himself as being infected with coronavirus. Only in this case, the irreversible consequences of the course of the disease can be prevented.
Earlier, the head of the Gamaleya Center, Alexander Gintsburg, revealed the level of antibodies sufficient to protect against coronavirus. Gunzburg noted that, according to a study by the Gamaleya Center, conducted jointly with the Moscow Department of Health, 300 antibodies in international units fully protect against the delta strain of COVID-19.