Uncontrolled transmission of Covid-19 cases from day to day in several countries has made this virus hard to end. It is getting worse when the virus has begun to mutate a variant that is more transferable and infectious 30-70 times than the original strain in Wuhan back then. This virus was detected when two immigrants came home to Indonesia. They were detected to be infected with the Covid-19 variant called Corona B.1.1.7.
Head of Genetics Working Group FK-KMK UGM, dr. Gunadi, SpBA, Ph.D., explained to the reporters on Thursday (04/03) that this new variant has no association with the patient's severity level. "In last December, research revealed that this virus wouldn't affect the severity level of the patient. However, the latest research revealed otherwise. Hence, to confirm this, there should be further research conducted," he said.
All the community needs to do is keep implementing the health protocols of 3M (washing hands, wearing masks, keeping distance by avoiding the crowds) so that the new variant won't infect them.
"They should not have worried about this new virus variant as long as they discipline in implementing 3M," he added.
He also added that the community should not have worried too much because this new variant has not significantly affected the vaccine efficacy.
"The news is not true. This new covid variant won't have a significant impact on the efficacy of the current vaccine that we have such as Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, or even Sinovac," he said.
To prevent the transmission of the new covid variant of B.1.1.7, the government should be agile and responsive to tracing people abroad. Not to mention, increasing genomic surveillance and limiting mobility are also necessary.
Author: Gusti Grehenson
Photo: BBC World
Translator: Natasa