Filenews 3 February 2022
The possibility of administering a 4th dose of a vaccine against Covid-19 will be reviewed towards September, said Professor of Microbiology/Molecular Virology of the Medical School of the University of Nicosia, Dr. Petros Karagiannis, who added that by May discussions on turning the virus into an endemic disease may begin.
However, Dr. Karagiannis, who is also a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Health, said that "at the moment there is an uncertainty regarding the outcome of the Omikron variant", noting that Cyprus will proceed for the time being with caution and mild relaxations.
Difficult to take brave measures
Asked to comment on the move of many countries, which are easing the restrictions on citizens, amid hopes that the wave of Omikron has passed its peak and if Cyprus is able to be among these countries, Mr. Karagiannis said that "it is a little difficult at the moment to move in Cyprus to brave measures, as some European countries have done."
"At the moment there is an uncertainty regarding the outcome of Omikron. Where in South Africa its route was rapid, in other European countries there was the descent, but then there was a stability. Right now there is a rise. It is a little difficult at the moment to take brave measures as some European countries have done," he said.
Petros Karagiannis said, moreover, that we should expect the consequences, if any, of these relaxations in these countries, to add that Cyprus' choice is to proceed with caution and mild relaxations.
Asked if at the moment Cyprus has achieved immunity through the high vaccination coverage of the population, but also the large number of hospitalized, Mr. Karagiannis said that "in order to be able to say that there is a level of immunity in the community it depends on when someone was vaccinated and how much time passed".
He noted that "over time the immunity we are talking about will slowly go away and therefore will need to be replenished from time to time."
Towards annual vaccinations
When asked if vaccination should be done annually and if the discussion about turning the pandemic into an endemic will begin, Dr. Karagiannis said that "we are probably going there", noting that the discussions are expected to start soon.
In relation to the possible administration of a 4th dose of a vaccine against Covid-19, he said that in Cyprus, although they had begun to discuss this possibility, they nevertheless decided to wait until the summer, after explaining that for the moment the situation and the strains that exist in Cyprus "are not particularly dangerous".
"We will wait and see by the summer how things develop and if something new emerges or depending on what emerges, decisions will be made for the winter, which will be what happens with the flu," he said.
He also said that around May discussions will begin to turn the virus into an endemic, however, he said this will depend on what happens in the countries where vaccination coverage is not high, but also on the countries that have relaxed the measures at the moment.
High the vaccination coverage, high and the transmission
He stressed that vaccination coverage in Cyprus may be high, but noted that "the transmission of the virus is also high".
He further explained that under these circumstances the virus can find ways to mutate, to add that "the situation is very fluid".
Moreover, he expressed his personal surprise in relation to the decision of some countries to relax restrictions under these conditions and data.
Asked to explain what it means in practice to turn a pandemic into an endemic, Professor Karagiannis underlined once again that "this virus is here to stay".
He said that "if the virus turns into an endemic, then the virus will be in a form that will not be so aggressive, but will make its presence at the time, which suits it to be transmitted, usually in the winter months, that is, it will not be transmitted all the time, as it does at this moment that afflicts the world from January to December".
