According to a new study, one-third of completely vaccinated adults who get cold-like symptoms may be infected with Covid-19.
According to Professor Tim Spector of King’s College London, anyone experiencing symptoms such as a runny nose or sore throat should isolate themselves and avoid all gatherings until they receive a negative test result, as reported by the Daily Mail.
“Don’t wait for the loss of smell or taste that may never occur, don’t wait for fever, don’t wait for that continuous cough,” he warned.
He told Times Radio that the UK needs to be “far more open-minded about who we test” and “get more individuals to isolate for at least a few days with cold-like symptoms.”
“That’s a rather high percentage of people who aren’t bothering to get a lateral flow test or a PCR test, or go to parties and pass it around,” he added.
“If that carries over to Omicron, we’ll be exacerbating the problem far faster than we need to be.”
Professor Spector advised that, in order to prevent the spread of Omicron, people should stay at home for a few days if they show signs of a cold.
“That’s when you’re most contagious, most likely to transfer,” he continued. It’s those initial few days, whether it’s a respiratory virus, a cold, or Omicron or Delta.
“As a result, we should strongly encourage people not to come into the office or attend the Christmas party if they are sick.” Take a test and then come out when the symptoms go away — it doesn’t have to be for ten days, but the first few days are the most important.”
According to the research, scientists are hoping that the Omicron form will not cause more severe symptoms and that vaccine-induced T-cell immunity will prevent severe sickness. Covid is killed by T-cells, a type of white blood cell.
However, because trials are underway to evaluate how successfully Omicron eluded vaccination immunity, it may take a few weeks.
