COVID-19 virus “creeping back faster than reported” – Noguchi Virologist warns of resurgence

Ghana is experiencing a concerning resurgence of the COVID-19 virus, with confirmed cases extending far beyond what is being officially reported, according to Dr. Joseph Humphrey Kofi Bonney, a Senior Research Fellow and Head of Virology at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research.

His stark warning, issued today on JoyNews, comes just days after the University of Ghana raised alarms about a cluster of cases within its vicinity.

Dr. Bonney, who oversees the National Influenza Centre at Noguchi – a World Health Organisation (WHO) designated centre for respiratory viruses – revealed that active surveillance indicates a broader spread of the virus.

“COVID is more or less now living with us, so it’s more or less like endemic,” Dr. Bonney explained, outlining the institute’s role in continuously testing for respiratory illnesses from sentinel sites across the country.

He detailed a discernible pattern in the data: “From February, we had a little spike, not too much… then somewhere in May, we started getting cases from other regions: Eastern Region, Greater Accra (some parts outside the university district), Volta Region, and Ashanti Region. So we have had cases from all these regions.”

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The “overwhelming number of cases” from the University of Ghana community two weeks ago, he noted, was what “broke the camel’s back” and prompted the university’s public circular.

Dr. Bonney stressed that this is “not a localised resurgence”, and it is largely expected given the current rainy season in Ghana, which typically sees a rise in respiratory infections.

Milder but highly transmissible variant, vulnerable groups at risk

Regarding the circulating strain, Dr. Bonney confirmed it is the Omicron variant, specifically a “slightly different subvariant” that is currently being monitored but is “not of concern” in terms of severity.

“Now it is milder; it is not as severe as we should be more or less be careful of, but what is about this Omicron is that it is highly transmissible,” he cautioned, meaning it can spread very fast.

Despite its general mildness for immune-competent individuals, Dr. Bonney issued a critical warning about the risk to vulnerable groups.

“We are talking about in a community where we will have vulnerable groups, and that is where we should be afraid of… it may not be so severe on the very let’s say immune-competent persons or younger ones, but what about those who are vulnerable in the society?”

On the efficacy of existing vaccines, Dr. Bonney reiterated that the original COVID-19 vaccines were designed to prevent severe disease, not eliminate the virus.

He stressed that with new strains and resurgences, immunity can wane, necessitating boosters.

“Anytime we are having resurgence, that means it gets driven by slightly different strains, and so that means we may have immunity waning,” he explained, suggesting the need for updated vaccinations.

Confirming the situation on campus, Professor Rosina Chanting, Dean of Student Affairs at the University of Ghana, stated that the numbers were “increasing gradually”, leading to measures such as a ban on social gatherings (excluding lectures).

While students have reportedly protested these restrictions, Prof. Chanting affirmed the university’s commitment to enforcing protocols like social distancing, mask-wearing, and hand sanitisation.

She also noted the difficulty in determining if cases were domestically generated or imported due to the large, transient university population.

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