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The arrival of a highly communicable Covid-19 strain to the shores of New Zealand from the UK has experts warning that the country’s quarantine process will be put to the test.
On Sunday, health authorities announced that six cases of Covid-19 were found to coincide with a recently identified variant of the disease, known as B.1.1.7, which spread rapidly and caused infection rates to skyrocket in the United States. UK.
Six people carrying the new variant, believed to be 50 to 70 percent more infectious than the normal coronavirus, arrived in New Zealand between December 13 and 25.
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The mutant strain of coronavirus that sent much of England into a “level 4” lockdown has reached New Zealand, but what does this mean for us?
We look at how the new strain is different and if we need to be concerned.
READ MORE:
* Covid-19: New variant of UK virus hits New Zealand as government introduces stricter testing rules for travelers
* Covid-19: the new variant could cause serious challenges in the coming weeks, warns an expert
* Covid-19: Kiwis face months of wait to return home as border controls tighten
Where did the new strain come from?
The B.1.1.7 strain first appeared in genomic sequences in the United Kingdom on September 20 in Kent and September 21 in Greater London, according to the Covid-19 Genomics UK consortium (COG-UK).
By mid-December, this had risen to over 1600, and they were on the move.
The sequences were not only found in Greater London, but in other parts of the UK, including Scotland and Wales.
Since then, it has been reported in more than 30 countries around the world.
It is unclear exactly how B.1.1.7 evolved, but COG-UK scientists believe it may have been the result of a chronic infection, which has shed the virus for months.
How is it different?
The UK variant is believed to be more transmissible than other virus variants found to date.
Peter Dejong / AP
The Netherlands banned flights from the UK in late December in a bid to ensure the new strain doesn’t reach its shores. The variant is already found in more than 30 countries around the world, including on the New Zealand border.
Although there is no evidence yet that the duration of infection is different than any other variant of Covid-19, nor is it more likely to result in serious illness, more transmission means more cases.
Scientists from the UK estimate that the new variant increases Reproduction or ‘R number’ (the average number of people to whom an infected person will transmit a virus) by between 0.4 and 0.7.
Chief Health Officer Dr. Ashley Bloomfield said that B.1.1.7 was about one and a half times more infectious than previous versions of the virus.
Are mutations unusual?
Viruses mutate all the time.
However, variant B.1.1.7 has what COG-UK described as an “unusually large number” of genetic changes.
It has accumulated 14 mutations, which COG-UK scientists say is “unprecedented” compared to other genome data seen during the pandemic.
Most branches of the SARS-CoV-2 ‘tree’ show no more than a few mutations, usually at a “relatively constant” rate: about 1-2 mutations per month.
What does this mean in the future?
Epidemiologist Dr. Michael Baker said the new variant will become “dominant” around the world in the coming months.
Since it is more contagious, it would be more difficult to contain an outbreak in the community if it did occur.
“We really want to avoid getting into a lockdown, but that could easily happen if an outbreak occurs with the new variant,” he said. Radio New Zealand.
In one piece for The spinoff, microbiologist Dr. Siouxsie Wiles wrote that the new variant should not affect how well vaccines work.
ROBERT KITCHEN / Things
Chief Health Officer Dr. Ashley Bloomfield said variant B.1.1.7 was about one and a half times more infectious than previous versions of the virus.
What is New Zealand doing to protect against the spread?
The Ministry of Health reported that people with variant B.1.1.7 are treated with the “same high level of protection measures against infections” as all positive cases of Covid-19 in quarantine.
“We can assure the public that there is no increased risk to the community,” the ministry said Sunday.
All Covid-19 cases detected in managed isolation must meet the definition of a recovered case before they are allowed to leave.
They must have been symptom free for 72 hours, after a period of at least 10 days from the onset of symptoms or a positive test.
Confirmation of the new variant would put the New Zealand MIQ facilities to the test, Wiles said previously.
“If there is any crack in the chain, it will find it.”
It was more important than ever that all New Zealanders follow the protocols of washing hands, wearing masks and scanning QR codes, he said.
On Sunday, the government also announced that as of January 15, people arriving from the United States and the United Kingdom must prove negative in the tests less than 72 hours before leaving.
