New Zealand's new strain is coming in full force: 5 people die every week! 70 people fell!

Reprinted from the New Zealand Chinese Pioneer Public Account (ID: Chinese_Herald)

Do you think the new crown is over? Wrong.

In New Zealand, there is an average of every week.5 peopledue to the death of New Coach.

Yes, you read that right. It’s not last year, it’s not the peak of the epidemic, butNow。

The virus keeps mutating

Recently, New Zealand discovered a new strain of the new coronavirus XFG during sewage testing, nicknamedStratus。

The World Health Organization has listed it as “Variants to be monitored”。

according to PHF Science(Former ESR) data, Stratus has been on an upward trend in the past two months.

It has become the second largest strain detected in New Zealand as of the week of August 3, second only to NB.1.8.1(nicknamed Nimbus).

Professor at the University of Canterbury and expert in infectious disease modelingMichael Plank It said: In other countries, XFG has replaced NB.1.8.1 as the mainstream strain, “in New Zealand, NB.1.8.1 is still dominant, but things may change in the coming months.”

It is worth noting that neither Nimbus nor Stratus have significant differences in their clinical symptoms, nor have they shown any more serious symptoms. But the virus continues to mutate, making it more likely to evade antibodies from the immune system, thus driving the number of infections to rise in the long run.

5 people died every week and 70 people were hospitalized

According to the New Zealand Ministry of Health, as of the week ending August 10, four patients over 70 died of the new crown, two of which were the direct cause of death and the other two were related to the new crown.

At this point, New Zealand has accumulated4,753 cases of new co-call deaths(1769 of which are indirect causes of death).

Professor Plank said that since the beginning of this year, New Zealand has averaged about a weeklyFive people die in new crown,at the same timeAbout 70 people are hospitalized for COVID-19 every week。

He pointed out: “This number is far lower than the peak of the epidemic, but it is almost impossible to completely zero. The new crown has existed in the community for a long time.”

The impact of the new crown is close to the flu

Professor Plank pointed out that from a public health perspective, although the threat of the new crown has decreased, it cannot be ignored.

He cited an example: “New Zealand’s flu season usually kills 500 to 1,000 people every year. In contrast, the current impact of the new crown is gradually approaching the flu.”

Since May this year, sewage monitoring data has shown that the concentration of the new crown has increased significantly. Plank said this is because people’s immunity will gradually decline over time. When the immune level weakens to a certain level, a new wave of infection will appear.

In addition, people stay indoors more often in winter, which also makes it easier for the virus to spread.

It is worth noting thatThe vaccination rate for COVID-19 is significantly lower than that of influenza vaccine。

“Many people have maintained the habit of getting flu vaccines, but have ignored the COVID-19 vaccine booster. The reason may be due to lack of information or misunderstandings. But if you can treat COVID-19 as an annual necessity like you get flu vaccine, it will be more helpful to public health,” he said.Plank said.

Currently, New Zealand People over 30 years old, people with low immunity or those with underlying diseasescan be vaccinated with the new crown enhancement injection every 6 months.

Related readings: