Over the past two weeks, a slight increase in positive cases for covid-19 has been observed in Morocco. This observation is noted in the figures published daily by the Ministry of Health and Civil Protection, but the good news is that the country has hardly recorded any deaths for some time, and the number of cases admitted to intensive care is at its lowest level.
That said, you still have to be careful not to fall into the trap. Minimal as it is, the increase in positive cases for Covid-19 in recent days is palpable. It should not be neglected, say the specialists. But should we expect a new covid wave from this winter season which is slow to come? Does climate change have a role to play in this upheaval of the seasons and the outbreak of covid and flu cases as well?
Asked about this, Pr. Moulay Mustapha Ennaji recalls that specialists around the world, and therefore in Morocco too, had predicted an increase in positive cases of covid from the end of October to the beginning of November 2022.
” This surge in cases coincides with the respiratory viruses that appear during this time of year. There are people who have rhinitis, others who are asthmatic, some have Covid or even the flu. Moreover, vaccination against the seasonal flu has been launched. And so all the symptoms of these respiratory diseases look the same, which makes people sick as we can see around us“, Explains the virologist to us.
Optimistic, Pr. Ennaji argues that the diagnoses made today in the covid-19 centers do not reveal many positive cases. There are certainly some, but not with the same acuity as last year. That said, the evolution of these cases should be monitored over the coming weeks.
According to the virologist, “ Omicron is controlling itself right now. It is no longer as virulent as before like the alpha or the beta. It is therefore less virulent not only in Morocco but throughout the world. Now there is an increase in cases, but if you compare it with the same period last year, there were 90% of people who had covid compared to 10% who did not. Today, it’s the opposite, despite the fact that we are in the middle of the winter season, which is not as cold as that.“, he says.
While recalling that the latest generation of the anti-covid vaccine protects against Omicron, Pr. Ennaji underlines that apart from Covid-19, there is the seasonal flu which circulates and to which we must be very careful.
” Today there are vaccines. Vaccinated people are protected. In parallel, there is the seasonal flu that should not be overlooked. It is the virus that has killed the most people, after the Spanish flu which killed more than 50 million people. Apart from the seasonal flu, there is a flu that appears every 10 years, and it is fatal.“, on the other hand, warns the virologist before insisting on the maintenance of barrier measures (wearing a mask, distancing, etc.) whether in the event of infection or suspicion of COVID or in the event of seasonal flu.