The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday that Japan had notified it of a new variant of coronavirus, amid concerns about several infectious strains found in the United Kingdom and South Africa.
“Over the weekend, the WHO was notified by Japan about a new variant of the virus,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference.
“The more the virus spreads, the greater the chance of new changes in the virus. In particular, the transmissibility of some variants of the virus seems to increase,” he said.
He did not provide details on whether the variant found in Japan is more infectious. Experts say the new variants are not unexpected, because the virus continues to spread so much, but that it should be monitored carefully.
Bloomberg reported that Japanese officials said they did not yet know the infectivity of the new variant and that it was found in four people arriving from Brazil.
Experts say they have not yet seen evidence that the new variants cause more severe diseases or are resistant to vaccines, but are still studying the problem, and increased infectivity poses an increased threat to hospitals.
“This can lead to an increase in cases and hospitalizations, which is extremely problematic for health workers and hospitals already close to the breaking point,” Tedros said.
He urged people to continue to follow public health measures, such as distancing themselves from others, wearing a mask and washing their hands.
Experts point to increased virus sequencing so that officials can follow the new variants and adapt.
“What is most critical is that we sequence the virus effectively so that we know how it changes and how we respond,” Tedros said. For example, while the diagnosis and vaccines appear to be effective against the current virus, we may need to change them in the future.