Over the last three decades, Dr Fareed Abdullah has been at the coalface of South Africa’s response to HIV, tuberculosis, and more recently, COVID-19. Biénne Huisman chatted with Abdullah about providing antiretrovirals in the time of AIDS denialism, National Health Insurance, working as a medical doctor, and the toll HIV has sadly taken on his own family.
Indications are that the virus that causes COVID-19 is going to continue evolving and escaping the protection against infection people already have. Researchers are working on next-generation vaccines tailored to fight off specific versions of the virus, like the Omicron sub-lineages BA.4 and BA.5. But can these new vaccines be tested and produced fast enough to keep up with the rapidly changing virus? Aisha Abdool Karim asked some local experts.
Omicron and its sub-variants have been dominating new surges of SARS-CoV-2 infections around the world and were behind South Africa’s fifth wave. The BA.4 and BA.5 sub-lineages unveiled yet more surprises about the evasive nature of these ever-emerging forms of SARS-CoV-2. They also hold clues for what to expect next and how to prepare. Aisha Abdool Karim reports.
South Africa’s fifth wave of COVID-19 infections was comparatively small and is already abating. As with the fourth wave, infection was much less likely to result in hospitalisation or death than in the first three waves. In light of these changes in the pandemic, Aisha Abdool Karim asks what the “new normal” should look like when it comes to mask-wearing, ventilation, hand sanitising, and other preventive measures.
South African bioinformatics expert Professor Tulio de Oliveira was recently honoured with Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people award. Biénne Huisman sat down with him to talk about his part in the discovery of new COVID-19 variants, his chats with the President, and the treasure trove of scientific research excellence in Africa.
Early in South Africa’s fourth COVID-19 wave, dominated by the Omicron variant, concerns were raised on what appeared to be an increase in hospitalisations among children. A few months on, Elri Voigt asks local experts what we have learnt about the Omicron variant in children.
This week, South Africa’s COVID-19 regulations were amended to state that people who have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 who do not have symptoms do not have to self-isolate. People who have tested positive and who do have COVID-19 symptoms have to isolate for seven days unless a longer period is recommended by a medical practitioner. Chris Bateman spoke to some local experts about the reasoning behind the changes and what other changes may be warranted.
