Data from the laboratory network confirm the growth trend of the disease, which could intensify this week. São Paulo and Rio see the expansion of the XBB variant
in the week of carnivalthe indices of covid-19 positivity increased by 20.2% compared to the previous week. The increase derives mainly from the pre-Carnival festivities and was driven by the expansion of XBB variant in the states of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, according to a survey conducted by Dasa, a private healthcare network that operates throughout Brazil.
For the research coordinator, José Eduardo Levi, with the impact of the crowd at Carnival, the country will have a mini-wave of covid, with positivity between 30% and 40%.
Data from the Brazilian Association of Diagnostic Medicine (Abramed) also indicate an increase in the positivity of COVID-19. The numbers that had been on the rise since mid-January had a major increase in the week of Carnival.
The Dasa study showed that the rates of positivity to covid-19, on the national average, reached 23.85% in the week from 17 to 23 February, which included the Carnival, with an increase of 20.2% compared to the week before the festivities, from 10 to 16 February. More than a thousand network units have been counted across the country.
Rio de Janeiro saw a rate increase of 31.5%, from 19.19% to 25.24%. The state of São Paulo recorded an increase of 11.6%, going from 25.14% to 28.08%. In the Northeast, where street carnivals also gather crowds, the positivity rate rose from 4.57% to 7.16%, in comparison between before and during the carnival. The Southern Region and the Federal District keep the indices stable, respectively at 14.48% and 6.67%.
According to Levi, superintendent of research, development and new products at Dasa, since the last week of January the XBB variant of the coronavirus became predominant in covid-19 positive samples collected in laboratories in the states of São Paulo and Rio in January.
XBB now overlaps with variants BQ.1 and BA.5, the latter, together with BA.4, having dominated samples sequenced by Genob, a genomic surveillance project run by Dasa since June 2022 and coordinated by Levi.
“Considering the agglomerations that occurred during the carnival and the characteristics of the XBB variant, now predominant in the country, it is very likely that positivity rates will be higher in the coming weeks,” he said.
According to him, as happened during the pandemic, the greatest increases occurred in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, but then the variations should reach the rest of the country.
“This increase already comes from just before Carnival and may be related to the pre-Carnival crowds, but surely, with this new and expanding variant, the increase should be sustained at the level of Brazil. It will increase even more in São Paulo and in the Rio because of the carnival. In the Northeast, where the carnival is strong, and which still had a very low positivity rate, it will certainly increase”.
The variants will gradually spread, says the expert
According to the expert, the variants will gradually spread, forming a new wave. “Throughout the pandemic, what we’ve seen is, when it peaks, peaks, these positivity rates are very similar everywhere. So the national average is going to be 30% or 40% positive tests. These waves or mini-waves that we have The Northeast is still in the 10% range, while in Rio and São Paulo it is already reaching 30%,” he said.
Abramed data shows that the positivity rate evolved from 12.5% in the week of January 14-20 to 22.01% in the week of February 18-24, the week of Carnival. In the previous week, the index was 17.1% – high of 13% in the week, the highest occurred in the six-week period. A total of 110,981 tests were performed, with an average positivity of 16.6%.
Infectologist Celso Granato, clinical director of Grupo Fleury, said that, since mid-January, the positivity rate has remained at 15%, which he considers very high. “We’re doing 2,000 molecular biology tests for covid and the number (of positives) is absurdly large. And, of course, it’s underestimated. Many people get tested at pharmacies and don’t do the more sophisticated tests. And when it’s a family transmitter , one person takes the test and the others who get it don’t.”
According to Granato, the positivity index has been stable at a high level since before the Carnival, but the effects of the gatherings during the celebrations could still manifest themselves. “Usually the virus has an incubation period of four to five days, but it can be longer, it can be ten days. We have had cases of people testing positive for the disease up to ten days after the first case within the family .”
Care must be maintained
The infectologist recalled that the XBB variant, which has high circulation, is clinically less severe for most people, but this shouldn’t be a reason for lax care. “If you have an elderly person, with lung disease, chronic bronchitis, covid can be more complicated. I think the most vulnerable people should go back to wearing a mask at the fair, in the supermarket, in the shopping centre, in an enclosed environment,” she said.
The specialist also stressed the importance of taking the Pfizer bivalent vaccine which began to be applied this Monday 27 in the State of São Paulo. The immunizer is an updated version of the existing ones against covid-19 and offers even greater protection against the new variants of Ômicron.
Initially, seniors over the age of 70, people living in long-term institutions aged 12 and older, employees of these institutions, immunocompromised people, indigenous communities, and quilombolas are receiving the vaccine.
“People should take advantage of early bivalent vaccine vaccination to get vaccinated. While there has been some controversy about how well it would protect people, most work shows the benefits of taking this vaccine, both for boosting immunity original, or to protect against the Ômicron variant, which is the parent of XBB,” he said.
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
