It is expected that in the near future it is he who will become the dominant type of COVID-19 in the world.
The risk of re-infection with COVID-19 was almost twice as high for the Delta strain as for the Alpha mutation. The corresponding conclusion was made by specialists of the Public Health Service of England (PHE). However, the researchers emphasized that the overall chances of reinfection are extremely low.
Experts from the Health Service of England (PHE) have studied the results of PCR tests of a group of people who have had coronavirus in the past 90 days, according to the Evening Standard. Over the entire 11-week period, COVID-19 was detected in more than 83 thousand people, 980 (1.2%) of whom contracted the dangerous virus again.
After some time, the researchers found that the chance of reinfection with the Delta strain was 46% higher compared to the topical version of the Alpha. At the same time, scientists emphasized that the overall chances of reinfection are extremely low. However, work in the study of this issue will continue.
Moreover, according to British experts, the analysis of hospitalizations and deaths shows that the likelihood of a severe course of the disease in the case of the Delta coronavirus mutation is as high as in the case of the Alpha strain.
“There is still a lot of uncertainty on this issue,” PHE said in a statement. “Laboratory data and non-systematic reports have previously indicated the possibility of an increased risk of re-infection, but now, based on national statistics, we have signs of confirmation of such conclusions.”
At the moment, it is the “delta” variant of the coronavirus that is considered dominant in the UK. The proportion of infection with it is about 99%.
According to the PHE, from June 21 to July 19, 1788 patients were hospitalized with the Delta strain, first discovered in India. Of these, 970 (54%) were not vaccinated, while 530 (30%) had already received both vaccines against COVID-19 by that time.
“The latest hospitalization record further proves how important vaccination is in protecting the population from severe illness and death,” said Jenny Harris, Executive Director of the UK Health Safety Agency. “As restrictions are lifted and the rate of vaccination increases, it is important to remember that while vaccination provides excellent protection, it is still not complete. We need to continue to be careful. ”
PHE also informed about the detection in the UK of a new type of coronavirus B.1.621, which has already been assigned the status of “studied option”. Today in the United Kingdom there are 10 strains with a similar designation.
In England, 16 cases of infection with the COVID-19 B.1.621 variant were recorded, most of which are associated with travel abroad. Health officials also drew attention to the lack of evidence that the new mutation causes a more severe course of the disease, and the vaccines used are not effective against it.
We will remind, earlier experts of the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that the “Delta” variant is expected to become the dominant type of COVID-19 in the world over the next months, reports CNN.
“It is expected to quickly gain the upper hand over other options and become the dominant coronavirus infection in the coming months,” the organization said in its weekly report.
The WHO recalled that this strain of coronavirus infection has already been registered in 124 territories (13 more than last week). In addition, in a number of large states, this mutation accounts for 75% of detected cases of COVID-19. We are talking, in particular, about Australia, Bangladesh, Botswana, Great Britain, Denmark, India, Indonesia, Israel, China, Portugal, Russia, Singapore and South Africa. Meanwhile, the organization’s specialists to this day cannot describe the exact mechanism that allows this variant of the virus to become more infectious.
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