Dr. Gerald Evans, an infectious disease expert at Kingston Health Sciences Centre, had some grim words for the citizens of Kingston, Ont., recently.
“We are at the beginning of an eighth wave,” he said.
A new dominant strain of COVID-19 in China and the United States is an Omicron recombinant called XBB.1.5, and while it isn’t the top strain in Canada yet, Evans expects that to change.
“Given the proximity of the states to us and of course lots of travel between the United States and Canada, it’s very likely that we’ll see that same sort of thing transpire here in Canada and particularly here in southeastern Ontario,” Evans said.
The news is concerning for pandemic-weary residents like Addison Edwards
“Just seems kind of crazy,” Edwards said. “I feel a little numb to it, like we just forgot about it in a way. Not that it’s something to be forgotten about for sure, I still take safety precautions myself.”
Staying up to date with vaccinations, in particular the new bivalent vaccines, is the best way to limit the eighth wave, according to Evans.
“They’re going to prevent you from getting COVID for what looks to be an extended period of time after that shot and that’s really important because if we can keep community prevalence low, then that’s going to be helping to prevent elderly, family and elderly friends from getting COVID,” Evans said.
Evans says the vaccine is also good at reducing the severity of COVID symptoms and preventing a trip to the hospital for this version of the ever-changing virus.
Comments