Strains: the Government ignores the 'drain' of the airports and does not link them with international travel

The Government has not prevented the new strains of the coronavirus from entering Spain and spreading throughout the territory. The British strain, the first to be detected and the most transmissible, is already the majority, despite the fact that at first Health insisted on downplaying it. In its reports, the Ministry admits confirmed infections of up to eleven mutations. In many cases, however, it does not identify the origin and even assures that it has not been possible to link them with international travel. The Community of Madrid has insistently denounced the lack of control at airports, and identifies Barajas as a gateway for the coronavirus, both in the first wave and in the new variants.In their latest report ‘Update of the epidemiological situation of the variants of SARS-CoV-2 of importance in public health in Spain ‘the Ministry of Health does not clarify the origin of many of the outbreaks. «Not related to travel» In the Brazilian strain, it points to several cases «with no known links to Brazil» . Of 48 infections of the B.1.525 mutation -identified for the first time in Great Britain- Health only indicates that 7 are “related to an international trip.” In the Californian strain (B.1.429), the Ministry indicates the following: “The number of accumulated cases is 26, most of them with no known relation to travel.” In the variant of English origin with the E484K mutation, one of the most worrisome due to its escape from immunity, it is only explained that “a sporadic case has been reported without a history of international travel.” Of B.1.621, from Colombia, 5 “sporadic cases” and 5 outbreaks have been confirmed, with a total of 52 cases. But, again, Health indicates that “no known history of international travel.”Indian strain The government’s reaction has been late and insufficient to prevent the spread of the strains. The latest international concern focuses on the mutation detected in India and which is wreaking havoc in this country, with more than 4,000 deaths a day. The variant is already advancing through Spain with a score of currently active cases. Last Friday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that this variant “could cause a serious alteration” in his plan to lift the restrictions, scheduled for next 21 June. At a press conference, Johnson insisted that the Indian strain represents an “extra risk” and an “interruption of progress” made regarding the epidemiological situation due to the pandemic in the United Kingdom. British scientists have also indicated that this variant is monitored “Carefully” in the UK, amid concerns about a possible spread of the same in the European country. Also this week, the WHO insisted on the “worrying” threat posed by the strain. “There is information that B.1.617 is more contagious” and that it has a degree of resistance to vaccines, which is why “we classify it as a variant of global concern,” they pointed out from the international body. Meanwhile, Health does not include this strain among the so-called “variants with the greatest impact on public health” (VOC), as it does with the British, Brazilian and South African and is limited to placing it as a “mutation of interest” (VOI), a generic epigraph in which it explains that the impact they may have on Public Health “is still unknown.” Sequencing Health also admits its deficiencies in the sequencing system to detect new strains.“Although all the communities are carrying out these surveillance activities based on sequencing, the information available in the Spanish Surveillance System (SiViEs) is still limited. This is information corresponding to 9 communities and the two autonomous cities. Given that complete sequencing techniques are laborious, the results are more delayed than those screened with PCR and the number of sequenced cases incorporated in recent weeks is still low “, it can be read in the document on variants. The Ministry admits that” the absence of data from some communities and the different proportion in which each one contributes with respect to the total of their confirmed cases does not yet allow us to establish representative percentages at the national level of the circulation of each of the variants with the greatest impact on health public ”.