Scientists confirm that the New York variant of the coronavirus is more infectious than others
'11.03.2021'
Lyudmila Balabay
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio released at a press conference on March 10 the results of a study confirming that the variant of the coronavirus found in the city is more infectious than the original. The details were shared by the edition Gothamist.
New York City Senior Public Health Adviser Dr. Jay Varma said two variants of coronavirus mutations - B.1.1.7 (UK) and B.1.526 (New York) - now account for 51% of all cases in the city. According to him, a preliminary analysis of the New York variant, first discovered in February 2021, confirmed its high infectivity compared to the original variants of the coronavirus.
He is convinced that the available evidence does not give grounds to believe that the New York variant causes more severe forms of the disease or reduces the effectiveness of vaccines. But it poses a greater threat to health simply because it spreads faster.
On the subject: Different variants of coronavirus in New York: what are the townspeople sick with
Health Commissioner Dr Dave Chokshi said the New York variant of the virus accounted for approximately 39% of all COVID-19 cases in the past week, up from 31% a week earlier. the proportion of infections with strain B.1.1.7 (UK) increased to 12% this week from 8% a week earlier.
No cases of infection with strains B.1.351 (South African variant) and P.1 (Brazilian) were detected this week.
De Blasio is optimistic about the effectiveness of vaccines against all of these options.
Mitchell Katz, CEO of NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation, described the situation as a race to stay ahead of the curve between the spread of the virus and the deployment of a vaccine. At the hospital level, deaths from COVID-19 continue to decline despite an increase in the number of variants circulating in the city.
“We did a very good job with vaccinating people at the highest risk,” Katz said. "Therefore, the sharpest declines in mortality and serious cases are in nursing homes, where we saw the highest death rates in the past March and April."
De Blasio, Varma and Chokshi emphasized that people should continue to wear masks, maintain social distance, wash their hands frequently, take tests and, most importantly, get vaccinated when they can.
"Vaccination is the number one weapon in the war against these variants of the virus," de Blasio said.
On the subject: A nurse from New York told why she does not want to be vaccinated against COVID-19
CDC officials said the two-dose versions of COVID-19 vaccines - Moderna and Pfizer - provide better protection against new variants of the virus than the single-dose Johnson & Johnson. Although the difference in efficiency levels is not too big.
According to the latest data, 2 doses of the vaccine have already been administered throughout New York City.
As ForumDaily New York wrote earlier:
- In addition to the higher infectivity in the New York variant of the coronavirus, scientists are worried about it. the ability to "hide" from antibodies.
