Exclusive | Coronavirus: low risk of second wave in China but stay on guard, Zhong Nanshan says
- Strict community controls helped to fend off the first wave but the country must not be complacent, top Chinese respiratory disease adviser says
- Large-scale sample tests could give researchers better understanding of the extent of the pathogen in the population, he suggests
In an exclusive, wide-ranging interview with the Post, veteran Chinese infectious disease expert Zhong Nanshan shares his insights into the global battle to control the Covid-19 pandemic. In this final part of a four-part series, Zhong discusses why a second wave in China is unlikely.
“With our intensive follow-up monitoring procedures, the risks of a second wave [of coronavirus infections] exists but another peak is unlikely to occur [in China],” Zhong Nanshan said in an exclusive interview with the South China Morning Post.
Zhong, an 83-year-old epidemiologist who heads a team of experts advising the leadership on the pandemic, said the authorities should not be complacent as the coronavirus was continuing to spread around the world. In addition, most people in mainland China, Hong Kong, and East Asia had yet to develop immunity to the pathogen because of controls taken when the coronavirus first hit.
“Given these circumstances, if there were no strict control measures, there would be a second wave of infections,” he warned.