Au Jiarong: The new crown is still a pandemic and cannot be compared with the flu. Whether the epidemic will stabilize or not remains to be seen

Whether the lethality of the new coronavirus has been equal to that of the flu, the government and experts have continued to exchange fire for the past few days.

Au Ka-wing, chief physician of the Infectious Diseases Division of the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health, pointed out that Omicron is still a pandemic, and he believes that it is still not possible to compare the new crown with the flu.

He pointed out that in order to turn the new crown pneumonia into a mild disease, the overall immunity of the society must be improved by vaccination, especially for the old and the young, but it has not yet reached this stage.

A week after the Mid-Autumn Festival, the number of local confirmed cases did not rebound significantly.

Ou Jiarong pointed out that the number of confirmed cases has not increased significantly, but it will take a long time to observe whether the epidemic has entered a plateau or has stabilized.

Ho Wan-xia, Chief Administrative Manager (Patient Safety and Risk Management) of the Hospital Authority, pointed out that the number of newly admitted and confirmed patients is high every day, so the hospital beds or other services will be adjusted flexibly according to the overall epidemic situation and the utilization rate of hospital beds.

▼ On September 8, the government epidemic reporter announced that the vaccine pass was reduced to 5 years old▼

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Au Jiarong pointed out that influenza is an endemic disease that has existed for a long time. It is a common disease and has seasonality. Among them, the H3N2 influenza virus has been circulating since 1968, and the H1N1 virus has appeared since the influenza pandemic, and most people have been seriously ill. infection and a certain degree of protection after vaccination.

In contrast, COVID-19 is a relatively new disease and is still a pandemic. For example, comparing COVID-19 with influenza, many data show that it is more severe than influenza, and with reference to local data, even the fatality rate of COVID-19 is higher.

Au Ka-wing also said that it was observed that the fatality rate of Omicron showed a significant downward trend from the beginning of the year to the past few months, but it was believed that the main reason was the increase in the vaccination rate in Hong Kong, especially for the elderly in institutions, and the current availability of oral antiviral drugs and Various prevention and control measures, etc., can reduce the mortality rate of the new crown.

Ou Jiarong believes that it is still not possible to compare the new crown with the flu for the time being. He means that if the new crown pneumonia is to be turned into a mild disease, the overall immunity of the society must be improved by vaccination, especially for the old and the young. this stage.

No significant increase in confirmed cases a week after Mid-Autumn Festival

Nearly a week after the Mid-Autumn Festival, the number of local confirmed cases has not rebounded significantly.

Au Jiarong pointed out that the local infection cases have maintained a relatively stable level in the past 7 days, and the number has fluctuated daily, but the overall situation has stabilized slightly compared with the rapid increase from mid-August to early September.

Today is a week after the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the number has not risen sharply for the time being, but it will take a long time to observe whether it has entered a plateau or has stabilized.

He Wanxia said that after observing this long holiday, the trend of the epidemic has not risen as sharply as before, and the number of confirmed cases has dropped slightly. However, she has noticed that the number of newly admitted and confirmed patients is large every day, so it will be flexible according to the overall epidemic situation and the utilization rate of hospital beds. Adjusting hospital beds or other services all hope to take care of patients with different needs.

▼September 10th Mid-Autumn Festival night, Kwun Tong waterfront crowded ▼

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An additional 8,278 confirmed cases and 16 deaths including a 4-year-old boy who died suddenly in Tuen Mun Hospital. Visiting to encourage the elderly to have injections