Second wave of coronavirus inevitable, say Montreal health specialists

#MontrealHealth; #SecondWaveOfCovid19

Montreal (Quebec), Jul 30 (Canadian-Media): Based on the history of infectious diseases such as SARS, a respiratory illness caused by a virus that is genetically related to the coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, many health specialists in Montreal say that a second wave of coronavirus infections is inevitable, its severity will depend on government policy and the willingness of the public to follow guidelines, media reports said.

COVID-19 Pandemic. Image credit: Twitter handle

"It's useful to understand that a second wave is not a discrete thing that happens or doesn't," said Dr. Cédric Yansouni, an infectious-disease physician at the McGill University Health Centre in Montreal. "There haven't been any pandemics of respiratory diseases that had a single wave.

"You will always have ongoing transmission for some time. It can last for months and up to a two-year period," reported by CBC.

Another reason a second wave is likely is the absence of enough people infected in the first wave to have sufficient levels of immunity in the population at large. 

It is also believed by some epidemiologists that the second wave may already be underway and many of them say the severity and duration of that wave can be kept under control, but they added that Quebec will again fare worse than the rest of the country.

An informal survey conducted by CBC Montreal was circulated earlier this month in which 170 medical doctors, epidemiologists, public health experts and medical researchers took part.

Two-thirds of those who answered indicated that a second wave was "very likely." A further 24 percent said it was "somewhat likely."

Pointing to the low number of deaths and hospitalizations, the Quebec government says despite the increase in cases, the public-health situation remains under control.