The BQ1 sub-variant of the coronavirus is expected to come to Cyprus as well, member of the Advisory Scientific Committee, Professor of Microbiology/Molecular Virology at the University of Nicosia Medical School, Petros Karayiannis has told CNA, noting however that it is not more pathogenic than other subvariants of Omicron.
For the coming winter, he predicted a new outbreak, but said that this will probably be at the level of the outbreak we had in the summer and urged vulnerable groups of the society to get vaccinated.
He explained that the new strains of the coronavirus do not appear to be more pathogenic than the previous ones.
Therefore, he noted, we do not expect the new strains to put pressure on the health systems or to take any restrictive measures other than the use of masks indoors.
He urged citizens who are over 60 years old with underlying conditions to be vaccinated.
Concluding, he said that “they are making a mistake not to protect themselves because we do not know who will get sick and how seriously they will get. If they want to protect their health, they should get vaccinated, he concluded.
Source: Cyprus News Agency