A video clip of a WHO official saying that asymptomatic coronavirus patients do not need to isolate at a press conference is circulating on social media with the claim that the global health body has taken a âcomplete U-turnâ.
Chayan KunduNew Delhi
Did the World Health Organization (WHO) say that asymptomatic Covid-19 patients need no isolation as they rarely spread the disease? A video clip of a WHO official saying exactly that in a press conference is circulating on social media with the claim that the global health body has taken a âcomplete U-turnâ.
In the viral clip, epidemiologist and WHO technical lead on the coronavirus pandemic Maria Van Kerkhove is heard saying, âFrom the data we have, it seems to be rare that an asymptomatic person actually transmits onward to a second individual.â
The clip of the WHO press briefing and subsequent TV discussion was a part of an American news programme âGreg Kelly Reportsâ on Newsmax TV. Anchor Greg Kelly was also astonished at the statement. The video started circulating on Twitter and Facebook with the caption, âBig Story: Unbelievable! Asymptomatic patients need no isolation … A complete U-turn by WHO. After destroying the economy of the world now a complete U-turn!!â
The archived version of the viral clip is saved here. Many Facebook users have shared the video.
What triggered the controversy?
In a press briefing on June 8, in an answer to a question on the asymptomatic spread of Covid-19, Kerkhove said, âWe are constantly looking at this data and weâre trying to get more information from countries to truly answer this question. It still appears to be rare that an asymptomatic individual actually transmits onward.â
The remark caused an uproar as it contradicts many public health experts who have been talking about the asymptomatic spread of coronavirus.
WHO clarifies
The following day, the WHO clarified that it still does not have the answer to the intensity of spread caused by asymptomatic patients.
âThe majority of transmission that we know about is that people who have symptoms transmit the virus to other people through infectious droplets. But there is a subset of people who donât develop symptoms and to truly understand how many people donât have symptoms, we donât actually have that answer yet,â Kerkhove said.
Expert speak
Dr Anthony Fauci, the top infectious diseases expert in the US, said the WHOâs statement on asymptomatic spread âwas not correctâ. At the âABC Newsâ programme âGood Morning Americaâ, Fauci said according to âCNNâ, evidence shows 25-45 per cent of infected people do not likely have symptoms.
âAnd we know from epidemiological studies they can transmit to someone who is uninfected even when theyâre without symptoms,â said Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
âAsymptomatic spread is Achilleâs heel of this outbreak,â tweeted Ashish K Jha, director of Harvard Global Health Institute. Reacting to WHOâs comments on the asymptomatic spread, Jha posted a twitter thread saying, âBoth asymptomatic AND pre-symptomatic spread huge problem for controlling the disease. Because folks shedding virus while asymptomatic. Pre-symptomatic has one advantage: you can use contact tracing to find folks they infected. But that doesnât help prevent the presymptomatic spreadâ.
Number of asymptomatic cases
Asymptomatic cases are challenging to identify because individuals do not know they are infected unless they are tested, typically as part of a scientific study. Therefore, various studies and their findings vary in this aspect.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 35 per cent of all people with Covid-19 are asymptomatic, but they are just as infectious as those with symptoms. As per the CDC, 40 per cent transmissions take place before people feel sick.
Conclusion
The WHO has indeed said that asymptomatic spread of the new coronavirus is rare. But it later clarified that it does not have enough data about the asymptomatic spread of the disease, as scientists are still determining the intensity of Covid-19 spread by asymptomatic cases.
Posted in Coronavirus & Health & World news