The Ministry of Health confirmed the presence of the Omicron variant in our country. The announcement came after a press conference held on Monday morning.
These are three young Paraguayans who are, on average, 18 years old. They went on vacation to Cancun, Mexico. They recently returned to the country. They all have both doses and reside between the capital and Central.
Faced with this situation, Sandra Irala, interim director of Health Surveillance, urged the population planning to go abroad to take all due precautions.
“Find out the place where they will go, evaluate the epidemiological situation and if there is a high circulation of the Omicron variant there, to avoid contagion. There is a recommendation to avoid trips to countries where there is high circulation,” he said.
It should be remembered that to date, 106 countries have already announced that they have this variant in circulation.
He also insisted that the local population should be vaccinated, considering that immunization is effective against all variants.
OCCUPATION
Abdo Benítez, President of the Republic, announced in July of this year the construction of 19 contingency pavilions and the incorporation of almost 600 intensive care beds (ICU) since the arrival of the pandemic in the country (March 2020).
When asked by the press about what happened to all these improvements, Julio Borba, Minister of Health, replied that the beds were occupied by other polyvalent pathologies, but they will be used for the treatment of Covid-19 again if the situation so requires. .
Borba announced that this week there could be some changes in the demands of travelers who return to the country, but they will be regional measures, that is, provisions that will be required in all countries to strengthen the Mercosur bloc.
“This variant is much more contagious. Its replication is very fast. It is averaging 100 thousand to 200 thousand cases daily. Some countries in the region have 16,000 cases per day. That worries us. The intensification of the vaccination process will be key,” he said.
NUMBERS
Carolina Aquino, director of the Central Laboratory, stated for her part that only in the month of December they carried out 9,972 tests. Among them 547 tested positive. 87% corresponds to the Delta variant. In addition to the three confirmed cases, another 46 are being tested.
TRANSMISSIBILITY
Tomás Mateo Balmelli, an infectologist, pointed out that the arrival of the Omicron was to be expected, since many people travel abroad for the year-end holidays.
“They return from different points, such as Europe and the United States where they are going through a fourth wave with this variant,” he said.
He said that the Omicron does not present such an intense disease, so it is difficult to diagnose it. For this very reason it is so transmissible.
“The Gamma or Delta variants present very clear symptoms. Many Paraguayans left in December for snacks in Brazil and Central America. These regions have high transmission. Not counting the number of Paraguayans who will go to Brazil in January,” he warned.
KEY CODE
Finally, the interviewee stated that this situation changes the scenario. He noted that, until the first week of December, transmission was very low. That is, only 1% to 2% of all those tested were positive. Now, it increased to 4% to 5% in the last few days, but this percentage will continue to increase.
“The key to success will be increasing the number of tests. Early diagnosis will be key to isolation and avoid massive contagion,” he recommended.
MEASURES
Gloria Meza, president of the Paraguayan Circle of Physicians (CPM), pointed out, for her part, that this variant presents symptoms that are not very serious, but yes, very contagious. He stressed that half of the target audience is already vaccinated with both doses, referring to adults over 60 years of age, people with underlying pathologies and health personnel.
The doctor lamented that citizens are neglecting sanitary measures. He also urged to avoid crowds.
“I ask citizens to maintain sanitary measures and avoid crowding. Also the use of alcohol at all times, not sharing the terere and keeping distance at the end of the year parties, “he said.
