The new wave of COVID-19 infections brought variants KP.2 and KP.3 to our country; a UNAM specialist detailed that the peak of cases will occur within 3 to 6 weeks.
It seems that COVID-19 is in the air during summer vacation. And it’s true that just when the 2023-2024 school cycle ended, the number of respiratory disease infections began to increase.
According to the Ministry of Health, during the first week of July, health authorities reported 87,075 confirmed cases of COVID, representing 8.2% positivity compared to the total number of suspected cases.
This data corresponds to epidemiological week 27 and from week 19; that is, two months ago, the cases began to increase again.
In Mexico, there have been reports of new variants, which belong to the omicron family. These are KP.2 and KP.3. They are considered more contagious than other strains.
In Mexico, eight cases associated with the KP.2 variant and one case related to KP.3 have been reported, according to the National Institute of Genomic Medicine (INmegen) and the National Institute of Respiratory Diseases (INER).
Who are the most vulnerable people to the new KP.3 COVID-19 variant?
According to health authority records, children aged 1 to 4 years old have been more affected by the KP.3 COVID-19 variant. Additionally, hospitalizations are concentrated in this age group.
Baruch Díaz, an epidemiologist from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), detailed for Foro TV that the second wave of infections in 2024 will peak within 3 to 6 weeks.
“‘It looks like it’s going to get worse because we already have a positivity rate higher than what was seen at the peak of the first wave of 2024; during this one, we’ve observed a positivity rate of 21%, and so far in this wave of infections, we already have a 20% positivity rate’, said the specialist.”
Source: El Financiero
