The Central Epidemic Command Center announced today that there were 46 new confirmed cases of Omicron subtype variants BA.4 and BA.5 in China, including 2 local cases and 44 imported cases, respectively. Up to now, a total of 370 confirmed cases of imported Omicron subtype variants have been detected in China, including 54 cases of BA.4 and 316 cases of BA.5; and a total of 7 confirmed local cases, all of which are BA.5 subtypes. Among them, 6 cases were related to airport pick-up and belonged to 4 families.
The command center stated that there were 2 new local cases of Omicron subtype variant BA.5 today, both of which were males in their 50s (hereinfollowing referred to as case A and case B), both of which were infected by family clusters. In case A, on June 27 this year, he took 2 family members who entered the United States to the airport to return home for quarantine. Both family members tested positive at the airport (the Omicron BA.5 immigration cases announced on July 11 and today). Case A was isolated at his home because he developed fever and cough symptoms on June 30 and was diagnosed with a positive quick test. Afterwards, the sequenced result of a family member who was confirmed to enter the country was Omicron BA.5 on July 6. After the relevant epidemic investigation and PCR test, the family members in the same family and Case A were all Omicron BA.5, and the test result of another family member who lived with them was negative. At present, the quarantine period of all 3 cases has expired, and the test results of 3 close contacts of case A in the workplace are all negative.
Case B went to the airport with another family member on July 1 this year to pick up a family member who had entered Italy and returned to home for quarantine. The family member tested positive at the airport (the case of Omicron BA.5 imported from abroad announced on July 11), and the sequenced result was Omicron BA.5 on July 9. After arrangements for case B and the family who picked up the plane, PCR In the test, the positive diagnosis of case B was confirmed as Omicron BA.5, and the other family members were negative by PCR for the first time, and they were positive following sequencing in case B, and the gene sequencing was in progress. At present, case B and the other family members are still in isolation; Kuang listed 2 workplace contacts, and the test results were all negative.
The command center reminds that at present, there are more domestic cases in the country than when picking up and dropping off, and the possibility of infection is higher. When picking up relatives and friends, please complete the vaccination (3 doses is better), wear a mask, keep the car ventilated, and avoid eating or talking. It is recommended to take self-health monitoring for the pick-up and drop-off. If you have symptoms, you should quickly screen. If you have a quick test, you should take the initiative to inform the doctor of your contact history to protect yourself and your family.
The command center said that 6 strains of Omicron BA.4 and 38 strains of Omicron BA.5 were newly detected in the immigration cases at home and abroad. The cases were 25 males and 19 females, aged between their 10s and 70s. The dates are from June 16 to July 11 this year. Among them, 4 cases of Omicron BA were detected from 2 cases in the United Kingdom, Germany, Hungary, the United States and the Netherlands (1 case each); 5 cases of Omicron BA were detected from 5 cases in the United States, 4 cases in Germany, France and the United Arab Emirates There are 3 cases each, 2 cases each in Paraguay, Italy, the Philippines, India, Denmark and Singapore, and 1 case each in Indonesia, Austria, Egypt, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Thailand, Poland, Hong Kong, Greece, Malaysia and Brazil.
The command center pointed out that the international Omicron subtype variants BA.4 and BA.5 were first discovered in South Africa in January and February this year, respectively. Studies have shown that the two virus strains have high infectivity and immune escape characteristics. Community transmission capacity; the World Health Organization data on July 13 this year pointed out that the number of countries and cases infected with BA.4 and BA.5 variants in the world continues to increase, of which BA.5 has increased rapidly, accounting for regarding 50%, BA. .4 proportion rose to 14%. The command center further stated that so far, at least 89 countries have reported cases of BA.5 variant infection, and it has become the mainstream strain in many European and American countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, resulting in a rapid recovery of the epidemic and an increase in the number of hospitalizations. In Portugal, the proportion of re-infection cases has increased, and neighboring Singapore, Japan, South Korea, mainland China, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam have reported community infection cases, and the epidemic is also heating up.
The command center emphasized that according to the existing research, the probability of serious illness caused by BA.4 and BA.5 is not significantly higher, but the infectivity has increased, and strict monitoring is still required. In order to strengthen the monitoring of mutant viruses such as Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 in local cases, the command center has increased the proportion of local cases for variant type testing and sequencing, and focused on the respiratory tract of severe and repeated infection cases such as COVID-19 childhood encephalitis. The sample gene sequencing operation is also planned to strengthen the monitoring of cases in the community with the existing respiratory virus contract laboratory monitoring network. In addition, getting the COVID-19 vaccine reduces the risk of severe illness, hospitalization, or death from contracting COVID-19. The command center calls on the public to still implement personal epidemic prevention measures such as frequent hand washing and wearing masks, and complete vaccinations as soon as possible to gain protection.