Within a week, Imre Kacskovics, a professor at the Department of Eötvös Loránd University, expects an explosive omicron wave, who spoke to InfoRádió after a conference on the effects of the pandemic on health tourism.

“Now, next month, the omicron wave will unfold, presumably peaking as well, so avoid enclosed spaces such as the jacuzzi, adventure pool or sauna, which will provide space for direct transmission of the infection. There are opportunities for families to bungalow-like. they can rest, alone, they can live with them, the high risk of infection must be curbed, ”he made clear.

International examples show that compared to previous waves

the omicron wave rises much faster.

“It is already interesting that it appeared much faster; we can remember the delta, which appeared in Hungary one and a half months late, the omicron was already here in Budapest, Hungary 7-10 days after its English appearance.”

Imre Kacskovics is sure that there is a lower risk of serious illness with omicron infection, which does not mean that there are no serious patients, but fewer people are hospitalized, which may be the case if the number of people infected increases.

However, the protection provided by the vaccines against omicron is limited because “the omicron is thought to be able to bypass vaccines like delta or earlier versions, there are very significant differences in the spike protein where the virus can infect the cell.”

“But we also see that a third vaccination is needed to keep a person from getting the virus, and since Hungarians started vaccinating in the third traditional long ago, in August, I heartily recommend to the elderly, immunocompromised and health care workers that it is worth taking the fourth vaccine. “

Even that they are better protected against the alpha or delta variant according to the vaccines.

Imre Kacskovics even considered it important to point out that the number of antibodies rises within a few days, there is no need to wait for protection for weeks, ie who belongs to one of the vulnerable groups, even you can give yourself the vaccination you need before the omicron explosion.

Cover image: A healthcare worker wearing a protective mask in an intensive care unit for coronavirus-infected patients at a hospital in Cremona, northern Italy, on 26 December 2021. In Italy, the government has made it mandatory to wear a protective mask outdoors due to the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. Nightclubs and dance venues are not open and mass outdoor events are held until 31 January. Source: MTI / EPA / ANSA / Filippo Venezia