Corona: Can shortening the isolation to five days be dangerous?

Many are waiting for the isolation to be shortened to five days but could it be a move that could endanger us and cause mass infection?

This is what the experts say

Leahy root

17/01/2022

Monday, 17 January 2022, 10:10 Updated: 10:18

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In the video: Corona Projector, Prof. Salman Zarka in a media briefing (Photo: GPO)

If everything goes according to estimates, in the very next few days, the isolation in Israel for the verified and those who have been exposed to the verified will be shortened to only five days (instead of 7 days).

No doubt a great sigh of relief will be heard as soon as this happens from the mouths of parents, but what do the recent studies on the Omicron variant actually show, and can shortening isolation be dangerous?

Before the omicron variant, when the alpha and then the delta ruled here, people around the world with corona symptoms or who received a positive test had to be isolated for ten days.

But when the new version arrived, self-isolation was shortened in places like Israel, England and the US to seven days. Recently even increased and the American Center for Disease Control and Prevention said that in light of the known Omicon variant, they change the isolation period to five days. Coming Soon.

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Some argue that the omicron is "mild" and does not lead to a spike in hospitalizations, but it should be remembered that this wave is sweeping a population with a considerable degree of protection derived from combinations of people who have already become ill and naturally vaccinated and immunity from vaccines.

In Israel, for example, the number of serious patients jumped per week and even doubled.

Is shortening the isolation dangerous?

Negative corona test (Photo: Reuven Castro)

So what do the studies say? A comprehensive review based on 79 articles from around the world reviewed a viral secretion of 5,340 infected people (viral shedding is the amount of infectious virus particles emitted by a verified person). He assessed not only the viral load determined by PCR testing, which can remain positive for some time beyond recovery, but also the ability for the development of a viable virus from these people, or in other words: are they still contagious.

The review showed low viral load in the first two days, but then the load peaked around the third to sixth day, and stopped on seven to nine days until the virus could not be detected on the tenth day. That is, the data supported a ten-day isolation period.

A more recent study from Japan (a study not yet published in a scientific journal) examined a viral secretion attributed to Omicron.

The study reflected the findings of the review, and showed that the viral discharge was highest at three to six days after the onset of symptoms.

And a small study from the University of Exeter, published found that one in three people may still be contagious after five days.

Conversely, data from the UK Health Agency (UKHSA) showed that two-thirds of positive cases were no longer contagious on Thursday and the CDC wrote that “the change in isolation days is driven by science proving that most SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the course of the disease. Included 1-2 days before the onset of symptoms and 2-3 days thereafter. "

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"The State of Israel does everything to prevent isolation but not to prevent infections."

Queue examination (Photo: Reuven Castro)

Dr. Oren Koibler, virologist and senior lecturer at the Tel Aviv University School of Medicine (Photo: courtesy of the person photographed)

Dr. Oren Koviler, a virologist and senior lecturer at the Tel Aviv University School of Medicine and a member of the "Madat" association, claims that shortening the isolation to five days is a mistake.

"This is part of the Israeli government's policy of preventing isolation and not preventing infection, and in my opinion this is a mistake. The State of Israel is doing everything to prevent isolation but not to prevent infection."

He says what happens is "that the omicron is faster and there is some faster decrease in the amount of virus secretion about six days after the onset of the disease. But it still does not go down to zero. 30 percent are still infected after five days. So if we want to prevent it - the people will be infected Others, so there is no point in shortening the isolation. "

He added that in his opinion at the moment there is no point in distinguishing between vaccinated and unvaccinated. "The differences do not require unequal treatment - both need insulation for three - four days with two discounts - leaving the insulation includes two negative tests and I think it is worth doing home tests for another three days later (8 days in total) to check for non-stick and non-stick . "Both in England and in the United States, as in Israel, they have actually given up trying to prevent infections and it seems that they prefer to return the workforce to work as much as possible."

So what can be done?

"If we isolate a verified person it is five days but whoever is exposed to a verified person for three days we supposedly reduce the number of verified people and earn working days in the economy. The assumption that there is no choice and everyone will be infected is incorrect. Hold on to reality. You can take control of this wave if they try to stop the infections. Given the fact that we have no idea how long Covid and PIMS - post corona syndrome in children - this strain does. "Two very optimistic assumptions - this is a lot of wasteful days for the economy on something we have no idea if it is right or wrong."

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• Insulation

• Omicron variant