We will never have a normal flu season again.

Experts warn that the COVID-19 pandemic was a harbinger of a new normal in health. The new breed of H3N2 Influenza (Darwin) came to confirm this statement, noting that we would no longer have “seasons” of influenza, with the serious possibility that the coronavirus could become an endemic disease. And more: concurrent infection of COVID-19 Influenza virus strains appear to be the future trend.

Current vaccination rates demonstrate the effectiveness of immunization devices, which have reduced hospitalization and death rates from respiratory diseases. However, the discovery of simultaneous infection with H3N2 coronavirus, commonly known as covid-19 and H3N2 “Florona“, to alert the scientific community, especially epidemiologists, who fear the double threat.

Experts believe that COVID-19 will not be eradicated

(Source: The Globe)

There appears to be a consensus among epidemiologists that society will need to learn to live with the coronavirus. A survey of 100 immunologists, virologists and epidemiologists by Nature early last year revealed that for about 90% of them, eradication of the disease is unlikely.

This means that it will be endemic disease, which is spreading steadily, but is confined to pockets of the world’s population. The less bleak aspect of this is that it will be possible to predict its incidence and transmission rates, allowing, for example, to establish immunization programs at times of greater incidence, as is already the case in the case of common influenza.

According to Julio Croda, a researcher at Fiocruz, severe forms will continue to be controlled. He said in an interview with Newspaper.

Challenges to be faced if Covid-19 becomes a major endemic. Vaccination, for example, should become the goal of an annual campaign, with vaccines adapting to new variants that arise from the mutation of the virus. In addition, work and schools will need to adapt to this scenario in which the virus is spreading everywhere.

This information poses a serious challenge to society: to change its behavior in thinking about the collective good. Clusters should be avoided during times of high virus spread, while infected people should remain indoors.

Positive scenarios depend on the containment of the coronavirus

(Source: Andrea Rego Barros / Galileu Magazine)

All scenarios put forward by experts are just hypotheses. There are some who argue that the current dominant form, which is OmicronIt is the harbinger of the end of the epidemic. Among the positive scenarios designed, two fill the population with expectations.

Initially, the Corona virus will be eliminated in some areas, as has already happened with other diseases, such as measles. While parts of the planet have extensive vaccination coverage and epidemiological control, other areas with low vaccination rates will still experience seasonality of the disease, potentially even transmitting it to areas that no longer have cases. This means that sporadic border closures can occur.

The most positive scenario put forward by the researchers is the complete eradication of the virus. Therefore, immunity acquired by vaccination cannot degrade over time and the virus cannot undergo mutations capable of circumventing the protection obtained with vaccines. For this scenario to become real, it is necessary to complete a course of immunization and take booster doses.

The twenty-first century has already seen three more serious epidemics

(Source: Butantan Institute)

In the twenty-first century alone, three diseases have already shaken the world, affecting a large number of people, many of them fatal.

• SARS: Severe acute respiratory syndrome, known as SARS, was also a disease caused by the coronavirus. The first case occurred in 2003, with an outbreak in China, and later spread to neighboring countries. SARS was the first highly contagious disease of the 21st century. Its lethality was 3%, after it was controlled by security measures in 2003;
• H1N1: Like H3N2, H1N1 is caused by a mutation in the influenza virus. The epidemic, also known as swine flu, has reached about 75 countries, with Mexico being the first place where the disease was identified. Between 2009 and 2010, more than 650,000 cases and about 18,400 deaths were identified worldwide. Despite its low lethal force, around 0.02%, the H1N1 virus has caused great concern to the population;
• Ebola: The Ebola virus is not a new virus, with its first cases dating back to 1976 in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, the major Ebola epidemic did not occur until 2013. With more than 28,000 identified cases and 11,000 deaths, the Epidemic The Ebola virus outbreak persisted until 2016 in some West African countries. The death rate is among the highest and scariest: 90% of people who contract the virus die. In addition, the virus leaves serious sequelae, such as mental health and neurological problems.