It’s time to mask up, sanitise at frequent intervals once again!

Visakhapatnam: 'Prevention is better than cure', emphasise health officials as Visakhaptnam has already registered eight coronavirus positive cases in the past five days.

Instead of getting isolated or hospitalised in extreme cases, the health officials advocate the need to consider safety protocols like how they did during earlier waves of the pandemic.

Considering mass gathering during the ensuing festivities, experts exercise caution to avoid visiting crowded areas as much as possible, including shopping and mass festival celebrations.

Although the cases reported so far may not be as alarming as it used to be earlier, doctors and pulmonologists suggest refraining from travelling to avoid the spread of the virus.

Currently, JN.1 sub variant may not sound that 'dangerous' but doctors do stress that it is highly transmissible and there is a larger scope for a surge in positive cases in future if precautions were not considered seriously. "In most cases, it may not lead to hospitalisation as JN.1 has not indicated any sign of acute illness. However, the sub variant cannot be neglected either as it is considered as the faster growing variant," cautions Dr K Rambabu, director of Visakha Institute Medical Sciences (VIMS).

The symptoms of JN.1 are more or less the same as those with the previous variants. "Except perhaps more gastrointestinal symptoms and less pronounced fever would be some of its signs. When case numbers go up, JN.1 is more likely to cause a new wave. And even a very low mortality rate can translate into several unfortunate victims," Dr Rambabu expresses concern.

Of the 85 random tests taken by the district health officials from December 20, eight persons have been tested Covid-19 positive so far. "While a 71-year-old person has been hospitalised as he is a cancer patient, the rest are under home isolation. There is a need to follow basic guidelines such as sanitising hands, maintaining social distancing and masking up to arrest the spread of the virus further," alerts P Jagadeeswara Rao, District Medical and Health Officer. Asked if any JN.1 sub variant has been reported thus far in the district, the DM&HO clarifies stating that it would take a little while to get the lab test results from Pune. "Unless the reports are seen, we cannot conclude it as JN.1 sub variant," he reiterates.