2023-08-30 17:47:16
The British Columbia Center for Disease Control has detected Canada’s first known case of a new variant of COVID-19 that has emerged in several other countries and is being monitored by the World Health Organization. This, an expert points out, is a reminder that the virus never disappeared.
The center says the BA.2.86 variant of the Omicron strain was identified in a person from Fraser Health Region who had not recently traveled out of the province. British Columbia’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Bonnie Henry, and provincial Health Minister, Adrian Dix, say in a joint statement that there does not appear to be an increase in the severity of the strain and that the infected person is not hospitalized The US Centers for Disease Control says the new strain may have a greater ability to infect people who have had COVID-19 in the past or received vaccines once morest COVID-19, compared to previous strains.
The World Health Organization says it is monitoring the variant because of its large number of mutations. It was first detected in Denmark on July 24 and has since appeared in Israel, South Africa, Britain and the United States. Dr. Brian Conway, infectious disease specialist and medical director of the Vancouver Infectious Disease Center, recently pointed out in an interview with The Canadian Press that the variant has likely been circulating for weeks, if not months, in the country. “It’s the evolution of COVID,” he said. That doesn’t surprise me. Dr. Conway explained that the BA.2.86 variant may not cause more severe disease, but is transmitted more easily than other disease strains.
“New variants emerge and take over by ousting the previous ones”, he illustrated. A new vaccine will be the most important way to protect once morest new variants, he says. This whole situation is a reminder that “COVID-19 never completely disappeared”. COVID-19 still kills regarding four people a day in Canada, Dr. Conway said, noting that Health Canada data shows 30 COVID-19-related deaths in the past week. As fall approaches and people spend more time indoors and viruses reproduce more easily, “we should prepare for an increase in COVID-related illnesses, COVID-related hospitalizations and of COVID-related mortality,” according to Dr. Conway.
No increased risk
In their statement, Dr. Henry and Mr. Dix acknowledged that it was not unexpected that the strain appeared in British Columbia and Canada, and indicated that the risk for people in British Columbia remains the same. . “COVID-19 continues to spread globally and the virus continues to adapt,” they wrote. “Reducing transmission and benefiting from high levels of protection through vaccination remain our best defense once morest all variants of COVID-19,” they continued.
They argued that people should “stay home when sick, wear masks when appropriate, follow respiratory etiquette, wash their hands frequently and, most importantly, keep their vaccinations up to date” . The XBB.1.5 (Omicron) strain remains the most common subvariant in British Columbia, the statement said.
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