The call had been made to Hongkongers to get vaccinated with the most recent generation of COVID-19 vaccination and flu shots before the Lunar New Year. It was said that the risk of an outbreak will be increased due to the approaching Lunar New Year holiday and gatherings, a medical expert has said.
The professor of infectious diseases, Ivan Hung Fan-ngai said on Saturday that around 80 per cent of the patients in the isolation ward of Queen Mary Hospital in Pok Fu Lam were COVID-19-related cases. Only one patient reported a flu infection.
The record revealed that the flu outbreak was decreasing after reaching a peak last month, with patients being mostly elderly residents or people with chronic diseases.
He said on the radio program “Although the number of severe flu cases was comparatively less, we should not let down our guard. The number of cases will probably go up during the Lunar New Year holiday as there will be more movement".
He urged those in high-risk groups to avoid crowded places and wear masks on public transport. He advised that vaccination can still be taken before the Lunar New Year as there is still enough time.
He said the elderly and those patients with chronic illnesses should get a booster jab against Covid and the flu as soon as possible.
He advised residents who got Sinovac shots last time to go for the BioNTech or Moderna mRNA booster, as it is useless to get more Sinovac boosters. He said the Sinovac vaccines did not protect against the XBB variant and the circulating JN.1 strain. Hongkongers, particularly those 50 or above, should get an XBB booster, he added.
He said “mixing” up jabs could provide more protection against the new variant.
He finally backed up his statement by saying “Don’t worry, my parents are over 80 years old and they got the BioNTech booster. They experienced no side-effects and they did not feel pain on the injection site either".
香港醫學專家表示，由於疫情加劇，居民必須在農曆新年之前接種新冠 XBB 變種疫苗和流感疫苗
我們呼籲香港人在農曆新年前接種最新一代的 COVID-19 疫苗和流感疫苗。 醫學專家表示，由於接近農曆新年假期和聚會，疫情爆發的風險將會增加。
傳染病學教授洪繁毅週六表示，薄扶林瑪麗醫院隔離病房中約80％的患者是與COVID-19相關的病例。 只有一名患者報告感染了流感。
記錄顯示，流感疫情在上個月達到高峰後正在減少，患者大多是老年人或患有慢性病的人。
他在廣播節目中表示，「雖然嚴重流感病例相對較少，但我們不應放鬆警戒。 在農曆新年假期期間，病例數可能會增加，因為活動會更多」。
他敦促高危險群避免去人群密集的地方，乘坐公共交通工具時佩戴口罩。 他建議農曆新年前仍可接種疫苗，因為還有足夠的時間。
他說，老年人和患有慢性疾病的患者應該盡快接種針對新冠病毒和流感的加強疫苗。
他建議上次注射科興疫苗的居民去接種 BioNTech 或 Moderna mRNA 加強劑，因為注射較多的科興加強劑是沒有用的。
他說，科興疫苗不能預防 XBB 變種和流行的 JN.1 株。 他補充說，香港人，尤其是 50 歲或以上的人，應該獲得 XBB 加強劑。
他說，「混合」注射可以提供對新變種的更多保護。
他最後證實了自己的說法，「別擔心，我的父母已經 80 多歲了，他們接受了 BioNTech 加強劑。 他們沒有出現任何副作用，也沒有感到注射部位疼痛」。
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