在感染奧密克戎似乎已成定局的情勢之下,許多人決定“把住自己命運的咽喉”,試圖通過主動感染來熬過此次疫情。
奧密克戎是一種新冠病毒變異株,在各路媒體的報道中,該變異毒株都是一種危害小于此前毒株、可能防止感染者再度感染新冠病毒的形象,美國的首席醫(yī)療顧問安東尼·福奇博士甚至曾經表示,未來幾乎沒有人能狗逃過感染奧密克戎的命運。在此背景之下,最近幾周,為避免接種更多疫苗或在不方便的時候遭到隔離,許多人開始找機會感染奧密克戎。
但一位著名英國科學家認為,故意感染這種新變異毒株是一種“極其錯誤的行為”,并特別指出,此種行徑或將造成致命后果。
倫敦醫(yī)學實驗室(London Medical Laboratory)的首席科學官昆頓·菲維爾曼博士說:“故意感染與玩火無異。”
菲維爾曼在1月20日發(fā)表的一份報告中稱,雖然有觀點認為感染奧密克戎等于得一次重感冒,但“其可能迅速惡化,進而危及生命,對于那些有既往病史的人而言尤其兇險?!?/p>
坊間證據顯示,“感染奧密克戎”的風潮正在形成??纯碩ikTok就知道了,從最近發(fā)布的一些視頻可以看出,為了避免錯過婚禮等既定活動,許多人故意在俱樂部或派對中尋找感染奧密克戎的機會。另有一些假期有限的企業(yè)主則試圖將自己感染奧密克戎的時間“規(guī)劃”到市場需求不那么旺盛的時間段。
一名39歲的健身房老板本周在接受美國廣播公司(ABC)采訪時表示,他一直在找機會感染奧密克戎。他說:“將感染新冠的時間選在新年年初十分合理,這個時段我的客戶大多不在本地,也就是說,我剛好能夠利用這段時間來調養(yǎng)身體,等康復后即可開工。”
菲維爾曼舉了捷克民謠歌手哈娜·霍卡的“悲劇性案例”。為了能夠獲得進入音樂場所的康復通行證,哈娜在沒有接種疫苗的情況下主動接觸染病的兒子感染上了新冠病毒,后于1月19日不幸離世。
菲維爾曼寫道,故意感染新冠病毒將會導致病毒傳播給更多的老人、兒童等弱勢群體,如此或將徹底拖垮本已不堪重負的醫(yī)院系統(tǒng)。此外,感染奧密克戎后可能還會出現新冠后遺癥,經受長達數月的疲勞、氣喘等癥狀,僅此一點就足以成為人們避免感染的理由。
菲維爾曼警告稱,所有人都不應該模仿“美國人故意感染新冠的行為”。他指出,在許多美國醫(yī)務人員的描述中,此種行為如同“燎原野火一般愈演愈烈”。簡而言之,他說:“坊間有許多關于奧密克戎的傳言需要得到徹底澄清?!保ㄘ敻恢形木W)
譯者:梁宇
審校:夏林
在感染奧密克戎似乎已成定局的情勢之下,許多人決定“把住自己命運的咽喉”,試圖通過主動感染來熬過此次疫情。
奧密克戎是一種新冠病毒變異株,在各路媒體的報道中,該變異毒株都是一種危害小于此前毒株、可能防止感染者再度感染新冠病毒的形象,美國的首席醫(yī)療顧問安東尼·福奇博士甚至曾經表示,未來幾乎沒有人能狗逃過感染奧密克戎的命運。在此背景之下,最近幾周,為避免接種更多疫苗或在不方便的時候遭到隔離,許多人開始找機會感染奧密克戎。
但一位著名英國科學家認為,故意感染這種新變異毒株是一種“極其錯誤的行為”,并特別指出,此種行徑或將造成致命后果。
倫敦醫(yī)學實驗室(London Medical Laboratory)的首席科學官昆頓·菲維爾曼博士說:“故意感染與玩火無異?!?/p>
菲維爾曼在1月20日發(fā)表的一份報告中稱,雖然有觀點認為感染奧密克戎等于得一次重感冒,但“其可能迅速惡化,進而危及生命,對于那些有既往病史的人而言尤其兇險?!?/p>
坊間證據顯示,“感染奧密克戎”的風潮正在形成??纯碩ikTok就知道了,從最近發(fā)布的一些視頻可以看出,為了避免錯過婚禮等既定活動,許多人故意在俱樂部或派對中尋找感染奧密克戎的機會。另有一些假期有限的企業(yè)主則試圖將自己感染奧密克戎的時間“規(guī)劃”到市場需求不那么旺盛的時間段。
一名39歲的健身房老板本周在接受美國廣播公司(ABC)采訪時表示,他一直在找機會感染奧密克戎。他說:“將感染新冠的時間選在新年年初十分合理,這個時段我的客戶大多不在本地,也就是說,我剛好能夠利用這段時間來調養(yǎng)身體,等康復后即可開工?!?/p>
菲維爾曼舉了捷克民謠歌手哈娜·霍卡的“悲劇性案例”。為了能夠獲得進入音樂場所的康復通行證,哈娜在沒有接種疫苗的情況下主動接觸染病的兒子感染上了新冠病毒,后于1月19日不幸離世。
菲維爾曼寫道,故意感染新冠病毒將會導致病毒傳播給更多的老人、兒童等弱勢群體,如此或將徹底拖垮本已不堪重負的醫(yī)院系統(tǒng)。此外,感染奧密克戎后可能還會出現新冠后遺癥,經受長達數月的疲勞、氣喘等癥狀,僅此一點就足以成為人們避免感染的理由。
菲維爾曼警告稱,所有人都不應該模仿“美國人故意感染新冠的行為”。他指出,在許多美國醫(yī)務人員的描述中,此種行為如同“燎原野火一般愈演愈烈”。簡而言之,他說:“坊間有許多關于奧密克戎的傳言需要得到徹底澄清?!保ㄘ敻恢形木W)
譯者:梁宇
審校:夏林
When getting Omicron seems inevitable, some people are taking matters into their own hands by deliberately catching COVID-19 to "get it all over with."
Purposefully trying to catch Omicron—a variant that is widely reported as less severe than previous ones and likely to immunize you against future reinfection of COVID-19—has gained popularity in recent weeks with people who want to avoid more vaccinations or inopportune isolation. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. chief medical adviser, has even said the likelihood of anyone escaping Omicron is slim.
But a prominent English scientist argues that catching the new variant is “extremely misguided” and notes that it can have lethal consequences.
Dr. Quinton Fivelman, chief scientific officer at London Medical Laboratory, says that “deliberately seeking to become infected is like playing with dynamite.”
While there is an argument that catching Omicron is equal to coming down with a bad cold, “it can rapidly escalate into a life-threatening disease, particularly for people with preexisting conditions,” Fivelman said in a note published Jan. 20.
Anecdotal evidence shows the “catching Omicron” trend is catching. Look no further than TikTok, where a number of recent videos show people deliberately trying to infect themselves at clubs and parties so they don’t miss out on upcoming events, like weddings. Others who have their own businesses with limited holiday times are timing their Omicron infections when demand isn’t so high.
A 39-year-old gym owner told ABC this week that he's been trying to catch it. "Timing a COVID infection early in the new year made sense," he said. "Most of my clients were also away, meaning I could get this out of the way and be available for work once I'd recovered."
Fivelman cited the "tragic case" of the Czech folk singer Hana Horká, who died of COVID-19 on January 19 after deliberately catching the virus from her son. She was unvaccinated at the time of infection and had said she caught Omicron in order to get a recovery pass to enter music venues.
By deliberately catching COVID-19, Fivelman wrote, there will be greater transmission of the virus to vulnerable people and children, which could possibly overwhelm already overstrained hospitals. There's also the threat of an Omicron infection leading to long COVID, which could lead to ongoing fatigue and lack of breath for months, and that alone should be reason alone for people to stay on the safe side.
Fivelman warned against anyone imitating "the latest American trend of deliberately catching the latest COVID-19 variant," noting that many U.S. medical professionals have described it as "catching on like wildfire." Simply put, he said, "there are several urban myths that have developed around Omicron that need to be stamped out."