Expert calls for increase in scale of vaccination to prevent new mutations

"Even if citizens have anti-coronavirus antibodies in their bodies, they will boost resistance with a booster dose," Ph.D. Hayat Aliyeva, associate professor of the Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology of the Azerbaijani Medical University, told Report.

In her opinion, it is necessary to strengthen the immune system to prevent the virus from causing disease in the body: “The vaccine also performs this function. It should be noted that there is a sharp increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in the world, as well as in the region. Even a new mutation of the virus, AY.4.2, which is more contagious than the Delta strain, has begun to spread. New mutations in the coronavirus often occur. This is a characteristic of the virus. Despite the increase in the number of infections in Azerbaijan, the situation is under control compared to many countries. Vaccines used in the country are effective against these mutations.”

Hayat Aliyeva added that it is necessary to increase the scale of vaccination to protect against new mutations: “Therefore, it is recommended to get shot with a third booster dose. We advise our patients to have their antibodies checked regularly. The reason why people are less susceptible to the disease than before is that the immune system is strengthened through vaccination.”

The expert stressed that in addition to vaccination, people should also lead a healthy lifestyle: "For this, it is important to eat properly, take vitamin-rich foods, follow the rules of hygiene, maintain social distance, use a mask indoors. Thanks to proper quarantine measures and the vaccination process, Azerbaijan is now one of the world's leading countries in terms of the level of infection per million people. Azerbaijan has taken timely and necessary preventive steps and is one of the first post-Soviet countries to start vaccination. However, in the current situation, it is necessary for citizens to be vaccinated more intensively, to speed up the 3rd dose of vaccination. Cold weather accelerates the spread of influenza infections. For this reason, it is advisable to avoid gathering indoors.”

To date, 9,518,912 doses of vaccine have been made in the country.