There’s a lot of talk about "Zero COVID," but what exactly does that mean? Many infectious disease experts believe wiping out SARS-CoV-2 worldwide is not possible — but that's not what Zero COVID means, argues Deepti Gurdasani, of Queen Mary University of London, who points out that elimination is not eradication.
There's a "push from parts of the scientific community to portray Zero COVID as extreme or ignorant,” she said. “It isn't. It has far more evidence behind it than most strategies. It has been achieved. It's certainly worth aiming for, even if not achieved, as it saves lives and livelihoods."
What most scientists do seem to agree on are four foundational principles for containing COVID-19 that were outlined at the Dahlem Workshop on the Eradication of Infectious Diseases, including:
- Control — A reduction in local case levels that requires an intervention to sustain.
- Elimination — Reducing local disease incidence to zero, with interventions still needed to maintain it.
- Eradication — Reducing disease incidence around the world to zero, with interventions no longer needed.
- Extinction— The pathogen no longer exists in nature or in the lab.
SOURCE: MedPage Today April 29, 2021