How about and how different is the Covid of the flu? In these long months the comparisons have been continuous, both by those who emphasized the differences, as they wanted to see only the similarities.
In fact, the two diseases have several characteristics in common. In both cases we are in the presence of contagious and potentially lethal respiratory viruses. Both can spread through sprays, droplets and contaminated surfaces. And the symptoms are, at least initially, the same: fever, cough, headache and fatigue. So much so that in winter distinguishing COVID patients from those affected by the flu, it seems complicated.
But, as well as the Guardian, they are the differences between the two pathologies that they count. "The Coronavirus has a greater capacity of contagion, it spreads faster and, as we unfortunately have seen, it can cause much more serious diseases and cause long-term consequences," says Fabrizio Pregliasco, Virologist at Milan State University and Medical Director of Milan Galeazzi Institute.
"In fact, they can arise in 20% of the cases after the recovery of the virus itself," continues, and lists: "diabetes, hypertension and even neurological problems: from lack of coordination to a lower heat tolerance. The Coronavirus involves the neurological system had already been seen by symptoms such as lack of taste and smell. "
"The greatest contagiousness of the Coronavirus is also due to the fact that symptoms require more time to manifest and people, without realizing being sick, they can continue their lives for days with the risk of contaging others," he adds pregliasco " The contagion lasts more ".
"The flu is spread from one or two days before the start of symptoms at four or five afterwards. In the case of Covid, we can infect others during all the incubation time, five days on average, and then while we continue giving positive , even if the greatest contagiousness occurs until the first ten days of the disease. "
Appeals the expert also to the problem of weak positives, who "can continue giving positive a lot of time and do not know if they are contagious", and of the asymptomatic, "individuals who do not present symptoms, who may not even know that they have contracted the virus , but that they can transmit it. "
Another difference: We are more protected from seasonal flu. "Although the virus changes every year, it remains in us a biological memory of the previous ones that partly protects us, as well as a memory of previous vaccinations," explains Pregliasco, "that explains why the 60 million Italians do not contract the Influenza each year but 'only' between four and nine million. All this, however, does not happen with the Covid, a 'new' virus.
Again, the budget analysis confirms that the R value of seasonal flu (the number of people that an infected person transmits the virus) has an average of 1.28. The coronavirus spreads more easily.
"For the Delta variant, increasing everywhere, the R value is estimated at seven, so in the absence of vaccines and other interventions, a single case would cause another seven on average," trusted pregliasco, "fortunately, as Advance vaccination programs The R value will decrease, although we are still not sure how much ".
Unfortunately, it is beyond doubt that the coronavirus is more lethal than the flu. "In Italy by seasonal influenza it is estimated that each year they die between 100 and 200 people by viral pneumonia, attributable to influenza, and another 4,000, mainly elderly, for indirect causes," says Pregliasco.
"Influenza is like the drop that fills the glass," he says, "causes a fatal worsening of cardiac or pulmonary situations already committed. In contrast, the Coronavirus has caused 100,000 deaths in Italy in 2020, and the figure is probably underestimated because al. Beginning of the pandemic The disease was not recognized, and already in these first months of 2021 the deaths have been reached. "
"Good news, however, comes from the different efficiency of vaccines: anti-closet vaccines are considered valid if its effectiveness reaches 50-70% (the significant percentage difference depends on the types of vaccines used), while vaccines Anti Covid avoid hospitalization in 90% of cases, "concludes pregliasco.
Date Of Update: 07 November 2021, 18:27
