Even if Covid-19 becomes a circulating disease like seasonal flu, vaccination is still necessary.
Covid-19 cases suddenly increased again, and many patients had to breathe oxygen. According to experts, this may be due to people recently neglecting to get vaccinated against Covid-19. As a result, the immune response in the community has decreased, and the disease has started to spread again, the local media reported.
The number of new Covid-19 cases recorded across the country is showing signs of increasing again. According to statistics from the Vietnam Ministry of Health, on April 10th, the entire country recorded 113 cases of Covid-19. Hanoi is still the leading locality in the country for the number of new Covid-19 cases.
Thanh Nhan Hospital in Hanoi has reported a sharp increase in the number of Covid-19 patients admitted to the hospital. According to Dr. Nguyen Trong Hung, Deputy Department of Infectious Diseases, during March, the hospital recorded 25 patients. However, in the first 10 days of April, this number tripled, with 75 patients.
More worryingly, the number of inpatients has increased. Only 1-2 patients were hospitalized in the last month, but now there are about 10 inpatients. Most of these patients require oxygen support, especially the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions.
“Today alone, we received 10 patients. Among them was a 102-year-old woman. In some cases, after examination, we determined that they had mild symptoms and sent them home. Those with severe symptoms such as respiratory failure and risk factors will be monitored at the hospital,” said Dr. Hung.
According to the expert, compared with the previous round, the hospital has not recorded any critically ill Covid-19 patients, but the number of hospitalized patients is relatively severe, and most of them require oxygen support.
“It may be because people have recently neglected to get vaccinated against Covid-19, the immune response in the community has decreased, and the spread of the disease tends to return. The second reason is that the hot and humid weather also worsens the epidemic,” said Dr. Hung.
At the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, there are currently 74 Covid-19 patients being treated, including 5 cases on mechanical ventilation and 10 cases on oxygen breathing support.
The hospital has also recorded an increase in Covid-19 cases recently. The patients had initial symptoms such as cough, fever, and fatigue, and no new symptoms were recorded.
According to the Hanoi Center for Disease Control, in the face of the increasing Covid-19 situation, functional forces continue to closely monitor the epidemic situation to handle it promptly and effectively. They are closely monitoring and updating information on epidemics and mutations in the world and Vietnam to propose appropriate epidemic prevention measures.
A motorist rides past a deserted street during Vietnam’s nationwide “complete social isolation” as a preventive measure against the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus in Hanoi. (AFP Photo)
Hanoi is also continuing to deploy Covid-19 vaccinations for groups of subjects, including children from 5 to under 12 years old and people aged 18 years and older who are indicated for vaccination according to the guidance of the Ministry of Health.
According to Dr. Tran Dac Phu, former Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine under Vietnam Ministry of Health, we are currently in a transition period from a public health event to an endemic disease. We need to calculate when Covid-19 becomes an endemic disease, and prevention activities will continue. It is still necessary to monitor and assess the risk to respond appropriately to avoid surprises.
He also emphasized that even if Covid-19 becomes a circulating disease like seasonal flu, vaccination is still necessary because many people still die.