People are waiting to be tested by medical staff at a mobile coronavirus testing unit in South Africa, Johannesburg.
Photographer: Guillem Sartorio / Bloomberg
Photographer: Guillem Sartorio / Bloomberg
The new coronavirus strain identified in South Africa appears to be more transmissible than previous variants and has accelerated the onset of a second wave of infections, according to a member of a group of scientists advising the country’s health minister.
However, there is no evidence that it would cause a more severe or different form of the disease, and hospitalization and mortality rates, as a proportion of the number of infections, are lower than in the first wave in July and August, said Ian Sanne , doctor for infectious diseases. and the head of the right to care, a non-profit organization that provides treatment for people with HIV and associated diseases.
“We have seen that viral load data are higher in patients presenting with the variant,” he said in an interview on Thursday. “The variant is more transmissible, the second wave has been substantially affected.”
The appearance of the 501.V2 variant, which Sanne says could have come from elsewhere before being identified last month in South Africa, has caused a political spit between South Africa and the United Kingdom, where a similar mutation is leading to an increase. infection rates.
British Health Minister Matt Hancock said the South African option was more dangerous, prompting Britain to stop flights between the two countries. South African Health Minister Zweli Mkhize called Hancock’s comments “unfortunate” and unacceptable.
For more on the dispute, click here
The variant dominates infections in the coastal provinces of South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape and, to a lesser extent, the Western Cape, Sanne said.
“No one expected this second wave so early and, because of the variant, it happened. Staff, nurses, doctors and others are under enormous pressure, ”said Marc Mendelson, head of the infectious diseases and HIV division at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town.
While more young people appear to be developing severe forms of the disease, it is not yet clear whether this is due to the more comprehensive variant or tests and the holiday season, he said.
There is no evidence that approved Covid-19 vaccines will not work against the new strain. As of December 30, the South African version had been reported in four other countries. The UK variant was found on a larger scale, with reports covering 31 other countries, territories and areas around the world.
– With the assistance of Loni Prinsloo
(Adds an impact on health workers in the third subparagraph)