Expectation among scientific societies Before the announcement of the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, that the last Interterritorial Council of the National Health System (CISNS) of this 2021, which meets this afternoon telematically, will finally address the proposal of some communities, with Madrid to the head, to shorten the quarantine time for people who are positive for coronavirus from 10 to 5 days, as has already been recommended in the United States.
A measure that the experts consulted by THE PERIODIC OF SPAIN, a newspaper belonging to the same publishing group as this medium, look very cautiously. “The sensible thing would be reduce it for example to a week which is a reasonable period of time. Do not jump into the void, but always go match by match “, advances the president of the Spanish Association of Vaccination (AEV), Amos García Rojas.
The Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, meets this afternoon, telematically, with the councilors of the autonomous communities. A marked encounter by the explosion of positive cases registered in recent weeks and that has led several autonomies to request a reduction in quarantines in line with what has been recommended in the United States. The first thing will be to analyze the epidemiological situation. The second, and consequently, the update of anticovid measures in the sports events multitudinous due to the constant increase in infections in the sixth wave.
Third is undoubtedly the most important issue: shortening of isolations in people with active infection. A decision that was not planned to be adopted until the Public Health Commission met – this week it did not. which would be at the beginning of January.
Community requests
However, President Pedro Sánchez himself has announced that the Report on Alerts and Preparedness and Response Plans, which depends on the Commission, is meeting this afternoon and we must wait let’s see what the technicians say. In this sense, as the Ser chain, the Alerts Presentation At the moment, it is not proposed to carry out the requests of the communities to reduce the number of isolation days for infected people even if they do not present symptoms of the virus.
EL PERIÓDICO DE ESPAÑA has contacted different specialists to find out their opinion regarding a proposal initiated by the Community of Madrid, seconded by Andalusia and to which, in the last few hours, Castilla y León has joined. From the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology (SEIMC), opt for prudence and transfer to this newspaper the need to wait for “studies or scientific evidence” to be able to collate a measure that would introduce a new scenario at a critical moment of the pandemic.
Reasonable, one week
For the president of the Spanish Association of Vaccination (AEV), Amos García Rojas, the measures have to be articulated according to the epidemiological realities. “At this moment, reality is telling us that the omicron variant has a shorter incubation period and, therefore, this quarantine could be articulated to this decrease in the incubation period “, he points out.
Now, the vaccinologist qualifies, it is not about “jumping into the void, going from 10 days to 3 as is being considered in some country, it does not seem sensible to me, among other things because there are still some gaps in the behavior of the variant. The sensible thing, in my opinion, would be to reduce it, for example, to a week which is a reasonable period of time. I repeat, not to jump into the void, but always go game by game“.
Asymptomatic with mask
“What is certain is that there has been a radical change of scenery. The omicron variant has caused an explosion of infections and a change in the pandemic: the cases have increased considerably and the incidence contrasts on the other hand with the hospital occupation. It is true that this increases and the statistics are tenacious and pounding and income increases, but not at the speed of previous waves, “the president of the Spanish Society of General and Family Physicians, Dr. Antonio Fernández-Pro, told this newspaper. Ledesma.
The situation of the #pandemic it has radically changed in a few days. This wave is different from the previous ones. The vaccination rate of the population is very high. There is sustained community transmission of the virus. The curve of cases and deaths is clearly out of step. I open thread:
– Jose Luis Del Pozo (@jdelpoleo) December 27, 2021
The president of the scientific society underlines the validity of vaccination “to reduce the severity of symptoms” and, in this context, he points out that there has been a worldwide debate on shortening this isolation time in positive people. “It seems that this virus is contagious for a maximum of 1 or 2 days And, after three days of symptoms, it appears, that it is not contagious. It is necessary to be cautious and also take into account the type of activity of that patient to be more cautious or less blunt, “says the doctor.
With symptoms, confined
In short, says Dr. Fernández-Pro Ledesma, the fight “will change and the pandemic situation”, too. For this reason, he points out, the disease control centers are betting on a reduction in quarantines, especially in asymptomatic and vaccinated positives. “We bet on the five days because the safest thing is that the symptoms disappear, but always with another five days keeping the mask and the other hygiene measures, “he clarifies.
In positive people with symptoms, the president of the SEGM indicates that he is not in favor of “having short quarantines. They should remain confined.”
“I am in favor of shortening them by five days following the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of U.S (CDC). Almost everything is omicron or little is missing, “says Dr. Jesús Molina Cabrillana, secretary of the Spanish Society of Preventive Medicine, Public Health and Hygiene (SEMPSPH).
In the case of positive people with symptoms, the president of the SEGM indicates, in turn, that he is not in favor of “having short quarantines. They must remain confined“He also warns that the change of criteria around this issue is due to economic issues. Maintaining the quarantines,” goes against the economy but health should give priority to these cases. The change in approach is due to the enormous number of casualties of workers that are produced by this variant “, concludes the specialist.