No want to fret as herd immunity towards Covid in Kerala not very far: Experts

Express News Service

KOCHI:  How shut is the state to reaching herd immunity? The seroprevalence survey carried out in July revealed that 44% of the inhabitants within the state had Covid antibodies.  Experts opine that the state has come a good distance since then, and a bigger share of the inhabitants right now might have developed antibodies, contemplating how the an infection has unfold quickly within the final two months. With the vaccination additionally occurring in full swing, hope is excessive that herd immunity isn’t very far.

Since July 1, greater than 11.5 lakh new Covid instances have been reported within the state. As for vaccination, 1.5 crore extra doses have been administered. As many as 1.04 crore extra folks have obtained not less than one dose and 45.5 lakh extra have been totally vaccinated. Around 22% of the inhabitants is totally vaccinated, whereas 61% is partially vaccinated.

“Since July, Kerala has come a long way. We are on the path to achieving herd immunity and, therefore, there is no need to worry. There is really no point in worrying about the high numbers being reported as the key factors are the severity and number of deaths, where Kerala is better placed than other states,” mentioned Dr T Jacob John, former professor of scientific virology at CMC, Vellore.  

Dr Monu Varghese, a Kochi-based pulmonologist, mentioned if round 50% of the inhabitants is totally vaccinated and 45% has acquired antibodies in seroprevalence, herd immunity might be achieved. “The pace of vaccination is good here. If at all herd immunity is achieved in two to three months, further waves and surges can be averted. We will have new variants but the severity will be low,” mentioned Dr Varghese. 

“Around 40 lakh people have been infected so far, but two to 2.5 times this number might have actually been infected. Many asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic cases may have gone unrecorded. That means around 1.3 crore people might have been infected, as per a conservative estimate. Also, there is another section of population that includes those who received the first jab after recovering from Covid. They will have hybrid immunity. When herd immunity is achieved, the crucial phase of pandemic will be over,” mentioned Dr Padmanabha Shenoy, immunologist and public well being professional.

‘Studies on immunity given by vax needed’ ■Rather than relying on herd immunity, there needs to be extra research on the dimensions of immunity offered by vaccines, mentioned Dr G Vijayaraghavan, founder-director of Kerala Institute of Medical Sciences.