The first domestic confirmation of the mutation ‘BA.2.12.1’ in the US… Concerns about re-proliferation in the second half

Citizens take a walk in Cheonggyecheon Stream in Seoul on the 15th of last month, when the social distancing reform plan was announced. [사진 = 이충우 기자]

It was confirmed that ‘BA.2.12.1’, a sub-mutation of the stealth omicron, was introduced for the first time in Korea.

This mutation is a mutation that has recently increased the number of confirmed cases in the northeastern United States.

According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) on the 3rd, one case of Omicron BA.2.12.1 was detected in a recent imported case.

Bang Daebon said, “It is estimated that BA.2.12.1, which is spreading in the United States, shows a 23-27% faster rate of detection increase than BA.2,” but “the evidence affecting the severity has not been confirmed yet.” “We are continuously monitoring the influx of new mutations through close monitoring,” he added.

The case is a woman in her 50s, who has completed the third vaccination, and arrived from the United States on the 16th of last month and was confirmed the next day. At a regular briefing on the same day, Park Young-joon, head of the epidemiological investigation team, said, “Since the diagnosis, no clinically unusual has been reported so far.” “We are continuously monitoring the inflow of new mutations through close monitoring.”

BA.2.12.1, which is prevalent in the northeastern part of the United States such as New York, is a sub-mutation of stealth omicron (BA.2) and is known to show a 23-27% faster rate of detection increase than BA.2.

In addition, 1 case of omicron recombination mutation XE and 1 case of XM were additionally confirmed. As a result of the weekly major mutation detection rate analysis, the detection rate of omicron-type mutations was 100%, including 3953 domestic infections and 216 imported cases.

Bang Dae-won, head of the Epidemiological Investigation and Analysis Team, said at a briefing, “The United States is currently reporting that the detection rate is rapidly increasing.” can take over,” he explained.

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