HYDERABAD: Even as COVID-19 cases decline in the State, experts warn of an upward spike in coronavirus infections in the next three months.
Owing to the ongoing festival season, there's a fear among experts that the herd immunity may wane. This comes on the heels of Telangana vaccinating nearly 1.97 crore citizens with the first dose of the COVID-19 jab.
"The concept of herd immunity working against COVID-19 is not fully known yet. We are seeing that roughly after a year of the vaccine, the inoculated individuals have a drop in their immunity. In this context, the healthcare workers and frontline workers may see a reduction in immunity in the coming days, making this herd immunity grow weak," explained Dr Rangareddy Burri, president, Infection Control Academy of India.
Experts also note that in the light of this, it is crucial to vaccinate more and more people as it will ensure that the hospitalisations reduce. "Cases will increase in the coming months and increasing vaccinations will ensure fewer people end up with severe COVID-19 and the burden of the disease of healthcare machinery is manageable," added Subodh Kandamuthan, Professor and Director of Centre for Healthcare Management.
The only alternative in light of these possibilities is to encourage masking and social distancing, they add. "Citizens must take both doses of the vaccine and must also practice social distancing along with masking. While festivals must be celebrated, mass gatherings must be avoided as much as possible," added Dr Reddy.
Telangana detects 201 cases of COVID-19
HYDERABAD: Telangana detected 201 cases of COVID-19 on Friday from 47,465 test samples. The State also saw 220 recoveries, taking the active case tally to 4,345. One person died of the virus, and the death toll now stands at 3,927. The GHMC limits reported the highest number of cases at 64