The WHO warns of the rapid spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus in Europe. In order to protect people, the vaccination campaign must proceed much faster.
Frankfurt / Geneva – Before the European Football Championship and the upcoming holiday season, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns of negligence in the fight against the corona virus. The WHO Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge, assumes that the Delta variant will prevail in Europe in the future, as reported by the Tagesschau. On May 7th, Public Health England classified the Delta variant as a variant of concern (VOC).
In Germany, the delta variant, also known as B.1.617.2, has so far been rare. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the proportion of delta variants in examined laboratory samples was only 2.5 percent, 94 percent of the infections are said to be triggered by the alpha variant first discovered in Great Britain.
Corona: Strong distribution of the Delta variant in Great Britain
In the United Kingdom, on the other hand, the situation is very different: the delta variant has spread widely there and the British mutation B.1.1.7. (Alpha) displaced. According to official information, the Delta variant in Great Britain currently causes around nine out of ten corona infections, as reported by the German Press Agency. The long-time very low seven-day incidence in Great Britain of around 20 has increased to around 50 recently. Because of the mutant, the federal government has again classified Great Britain as a virus variant area with extremely strict entry and quarantine rules.
- The coronavirus variants and their names
- The World Health Organization (WHO) is now using neutral names for the variants of the coronavirus. On the one hand, this should make communication easier. On the other hand, naming virus variants after the country of the first detection should be avoided in order to prevent stigmatization and discrimination.
- Alpha is the name of the variant B.1.1.7 that first appeared in Great Britain.
- Beta is the name for the variant B.1.351 discovered in South Africa.
- Gamma stands for variant P.1, which has been proven in Brazil.
- Delta refers to variant B.1.617.2, which was initially found in India.
Coronavirus variant Delta: vaccination protection only after double vaccination
The delta variant should also be able to evade the protective effect of the vaccines more than other variants – this is especially true after just one vaccine dose. According to a British study that has not yet been cross-checked, the protection should then be just under 34 instead of around 51 percent. Fully vaccinated people should, however, still be very well protected from the delta variant; the differences are only minor. Instead of around 93 percent, the Biontech / Pfizer product still protects around 88 percent. The vaccine Astrazeneca should protect around 60 instead of 66 percent.
In addition, the transferability of the delta variant seems to be particularly great. The risk of infecting people in one’s own household is estimated to be 60 percent higher with Delta than with Alpha, said the English health authority Public Health England on Friday.
Corona pandemic: WHO warns of the spread of the Delta variant
In many countries, easing has already come into force, while many people belonging to the risk group have not yet been vaccinated against the coronavirus or are still waiting for a second vaccination appointment. At this point you have already been, said WHO Regional Director Kluge to the Tagesschau. “Over the past summer, the number of cases gradually increased in younger age groups and then moved into older age groups, which contributed to a devastating resurgence,” said Kluge. Because of this development, there were ultimately more lockdowns and deaths in autumn and winter 2020. “Let’s not make this mistake again,” said Kluge.
A further spread of the delta variant in Germany can possibly also be prevented by current travel restrictions. The WHO Regional Director did not advise against travel, but urged people to behave responsibly. He also called for vaccination campaigns to be accelerated across the continent. On the other hand, since the delta variant is also considered to be more contagious, it would be obvious that it can prevail over the alpha variant in the long term even without a virus from outside.
Spread of the delta variant: progress of the vaccination campaign is particularly important
The progress of the vaccination campaign therefore plays a particularly important role in slowing the spread of the delta variant and protecting particularly endangered risk groups. This was also confirmed by Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and the Prime Ministers. “We are basically in a race with vaccination,” said Merkel on Thursday following consultations with the Prime Minister’s Conference in Berlin.
According to the Robert Koch Institute, around 23 percent of Germans are currently fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, and 47 percent of Germans have received a first vaccination. In addition, Angela Merkel has already announced further vaccinations for the autumn. “We take this Delta variant very seriously,” said Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) and emphasized that vaccination is a “permanent task”. (Anna Charlotte Groos)
Rubriklistenbild: © National Institute of Infectious Diseases/Imago Images
