50,000 confirmed cases of British mutation … “Review of 5 levels of containment that prohibits entry outside the home”

The number of confirmed cases per day exceeded 50,000 in the UK, where a mutant virus is spreading, which has a stronger spread than the existing Corona 19.

According to the health authorities of the United Kingdom, only on the 29th (local time) 53,135 cases of infection were confirmed. Only one day has passed since the number of new confirmed cases has surpassed 40,000.

A woman wearing a mask is waiting for a bus on the 29th in London, UK, where Corona 4 stage restrictions have been imposed. In the near future, reports reported that the UK would take more intensive five-step measures. In step 5, school is closed and everyone must wait at home. [AFP=연합뉴스]

The rapid increase in patients is also causing a shortage of beds. According to The Guardian on the 30th, some patients are being treated in ambulances outside the hospital due to a lack of rooms in the capital city of London, which was the center of the spread of the mutant virus.

Medical experts said the situation in Britain was heading toward “disaster” and called for stricter containment measures.

Currently 24 million people, 43% of the population of England, including London, are subject to stage 4, the strictest blockade. However, stronger measures than that must be taken.

Corona Test Station established in London, UK on the 25th [EPA=연합뉴스]

According to The Guardian, the British government is also considering creating a new Step 5 that requires everyone to stay home.

According to World O Meter as of the 30th, there are around 2.38 million confirmed cumulative cases of Corona 19 in the UK. The cumulative death toll exceeds 70,000, the fifth largest in the world.

An electron microscope image that allows you to visually verify the Corona 19 virus. [서울대병원 감염내과 제공, 연합뉴스]

The faster rate of infection growth in the UK is attributed to the emergence of a mutant virus that has a higher transmission power than the existing virus.

However, the mutant virus does not appear to cause more severe symptoms or increase the death rate than before, experts explain. The Financial Times (FT) reported on the 29th, citing the results of a study by researchers from the Public Health Administration on 1,769 people infected with the mutant virus.

The researchers compared 1,769 people infected with the British mutant virus and 1,769 controls infected with the “wild type” virus (formerly Corona 19) by age group, sex, area of ​​residence and time of testing.

As a result of the analysis, there was no statistically significant difference in hospitalization or mortality, the researchers said.

However, the spreading power of the mutant virus was overwhelmingly strong. A separate study conducted by the University of Birmingham and the UK Department of Public Health found that the virus level (VL) of those infected with the mutant virus was 35%, more than three times higher than that of those infected with the existing virus (10%).

FT reported: “If the VL is high, it can easily infect other people.”

On the 21st, a notice board was posted at London Heathrow airport in the UK indicating the closure of Terminal 3. In the wake of the UK mutant virus, 50 countries have restricted entry from the UK. [AFP=연합뉴스]

The mutant virus was first identified in the UK in September and has spread rapidly in London and south-east England since November.

To date, more than 20 countries where radio waves have been confirmed are European countries such as France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Switzerland, Spain, Middle Eastern countries such as Israel and Jordan, Asian countries such as Korea, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and North American countries like the United States and Canada. It is a country. There are more than 50 countries that restrict entry from the UK.

Reporter Seo Yujin [email protected]