Intensive medicine demands bolstering action against Covid-19 in the face of rising infections

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Madrid has 21 cities. (European Press) –

The Board of Directors of the Spanish Society of Intensive Medicine, Critical and Coronary Units (SEMICYUC) sees the current epidemiological situation with regard to Covid-19 “extremely worrying”, asking health departments to consider “seriously” intensifying the usual measures to reduce transmission, given the emergence of the Omicron variant.

Among its proposals is to speed up the revaccination of adults with the third booster dose, especially in the most vulnerable groups. They recall that “vaccination remains the most effective measure to reduce the effect of delta and micron in hospitalization and also to reduce the spread of the virus, and the third dose is observed to be very effective to achieve these goals.” On the other hand, they ask for greater limitation of capacity and to hold numerous meetings in public places.

As they explain, their greatest concern is due to the high rate of transmission of the virus, with a steady rise in all core epidemiological indicators (cumulative infection, hospitalization, and admission to the intensive care unit) over the past four weeks; As well as the partial loss of immunity conferred by vaccines five months after the vaccination of the second dose.

On the other hand, they criticize the slowness in administering the third dose of the vaccine. They emphasized that, “according to recently published data, only 53 percent of the population between the ages of 60 and 70 received the third dose.”

Furthermore, the arrival of the new omicron variant has mutations that make it highly transmissible in immunized subjects. They warn that “according to the epidemiological data available from the United Kingdom and Denmark, the growth of people with Ómicron is exponential, and it is also beginning to be highly detected in Spain.”

They warn that “although Ómicron’s ability to cause serious illness has yet to be determined, past experience has taught us that if the number of cases increases dramatically, there will be serious patients who need to be treated in hospital and there will also be deaths.”

The situation in the intensive care unit

Regarding the status of intensive care units, they warn, it “can be summed up in the fact that the number of patients admitted has tripled over the past four weeks, with a current number exceeding 1,300 patients admitted across the country.”

“Intensive care unit occupancy rates by COVID 19 patients already exceed 20 percent in five independent communities, and 80 percent of these patients will require mechanical ventilation with an average stay of 3 weeks,” they say, adding that, further, the Some units have already been expanded to be able to continue treating patients with illnesses other than Covid-19.

Thus, they appeal to the general population to remember that respecting the measures to stop the spread of the virus is an “absolute priority”: receive the vaccination as soon as possible, and complete the vaccination guidelines, including the third dose; use a suitable face mask, especially in confined spaces; maintain social distance, frequent hand washing, stay home in case you are unwell; Avoid enclosed spaces with inadequate ventilation, ventilate whenever possible, avoid crowds of people and mass gatherings, and finally, strict compliance with quarantine when needed.

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