A new and extremely contagious coronavirus alternative first identified in South Africa was first found in the United States with two cases diagnosed in South Carolina, health officials said Thursday. The two cases do not appear to be connected, nor do people have a history of recent travel, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control said.
“It’s scary, because it means there are more undetected cases in the state,” said Dr. Krutika Kuppalli, an infectious disease doctor at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. “It’s probably more widespread.”
The arrival of this alternative now growing in other countries shows that “the fight against this deadly virus is far from over,” said Dr. Brannon Traxler, the agency’s interim director of public health in South Carolina, in a statement. “While more COVID-19 vaccines are on the way, reserves are still limited. Each of us must resume the fight, recognizing that we are all in the front line now. We are all together.”
The two people infected with this variant are both adults; one is from South Carolina’s Lowcountry and the other from the Pee Dee region, the state said, while retaining other information to protect their privacy.
Sean Rayford / Getty Images
Viruses are constantly mutated, with coronavirus variants circulating around the globe, but scientists are primarily concerned with the recent emergence of three of them. Other variants first detected in UK And Brazil has also been confirmed in the US Researchers believe that these three variants can spread more easily and have predicted that it is only a matter of time before they appear here.
“At this time, we have no evidence that infections with this variant cause more severe disease,” the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement. “Like the British and Brazilian variants, preliminary data suggest that this variant may spread easier and faster than other variants. “
Scientists also reported preliminary but worrying signs last week that some of the recent mutations could modestly reduce the power of two current vaccines, although they pointed out that the shots still protect against the disease. And there are signs that some of the new mutations may undermine virus testing and reduce the effectiveness of certain treatments.
The coronavirus has already made millions sick killed over 400,000 people in the United States.
While some European countries are conducting extensive genetic testing to detect these variants, The US has done very little of this detective work. But scientists have quickly tried to do more and notice these seemingly more contagious variants.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported at least 315 cases of the variant discovered in the United Kingdom in the United States. These reports come from at least 28 states, and health officials believe they could become the dominant strain in the United States by March. This variant has been reported in at least 70 countries.
The first case in the US of the variant originally found in Brazil was announced earlier this week by health officials in the United States. Minnesota. He was a person who recently traveled to that South American nation. This version of the virus has appeared in more than half a dozen countries.
The variant first found in South Africa was detected there in October. It has since been found in at least 30 other countries.
Some tests suggest that South African and Brazilian variants may be less sensitive to antibody drugs or antibody-rich blood plasma treatment from COVID-19 survivors, both of which help people fight the virus.
Health officials are also worried that if the virus changes enough, more people could receive COVID-19 a second time.
President Biden was reinstated on Monday Covid-19 Travel Restrictions for most non-US citizens traveling from Brazil, the United Kingdom and South Africa. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends that Americans not travel at this time.