HYDERABAD: Chairman of AIG Hospitals Dr Nageshwar Reddy, while speaking at a webinar organised by FTCCI, said that apartment from treatment, the only other alternatives to fighting Covid-19 were Remdesivir and the body’s own treatment mechanism. Remedies like steroids were useful not to counter the bacteria but the body’s own cytokine storm response and should be used judiciously, he said. Mask and vaccination was the only two confirmed ways to tackle Covid-19, he explained.
‘Vaccines reduce severity’
“Vaccinations have shown that the severity of Covid-19 has reduced. We had seen this amongst our staff itself that prior to vaccination, 400+ got infected. However, in the second wave, after vaccination, nearly 60 per cent of the 2,000-odd staff got Covid. A majority were infected with the Delta variant itself, but all of them were mild cases. This goes to show that vaccines may not prevent infection but prevent serious disease,” he said.
Dr Nageshwar Reddy also stated that the third wave in all likelihood will be a milder one and is not likely to affect children specifically as previously speculated. “A recent sero-survey in Mumbai showed that 50% children had antibodies which shows the previous waves have also affected them. There is no clear evidence to say in next wave, they will be impacted. If we, as a society, mask up and vaccinate then we can see a negligible third wave go by,” he added.