{"id":161214,"date":"2021-01-22T20:41:38","date_gmt":"2021-01-22T17:41:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/johnson-says-evidence-uk-virus-strain-more-deadly\/"},"modified":"2021-01-22T20:41:38","modified_gmt":"2021-01-22T17:41:38","slug":"johnson-says-evidence-uk-virus-strain-more-deadly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/johnson-says-evidence-uk-virus-strain-more-deadly\/","title":{"rendered":"#Johnson says evidence UK virus strain more deadly"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#Johnson says evidence UK virus strain more deadly<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

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\"COVID-19\"
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The coronavirus strain that has swept Britain and beyond in recent months could be more deadly as well as more transmissible, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday.\n <\/p>\n

The sobering news<\/a> came as the UK sees record deaths from COVID-19, following a surge in cases and hospitalisations since the variant was first identified in southeast England in September.<\/p>\n

The strain has also spread to more than 60 nations\u2014including China, where the pandemic began more than a year ago\u2014according to the World Health Organization (WHO).<\/p>\n

“In addition to spreading more quickly, it also now app<\/a>ears that there is some evidence that the new variant… may be associated with a higher degree of mortality,” Johnson said at a news conference.<\/p>\n

He blamed the variant for the grim situation engulfing Britain, where another 1,401 fatalities were announced Friday, taking the overall toll to 95,981\u2014the highest in Europe.<\/p>\n

Virus deaths have risen 16 percent over the past week, while the number of people hospitalised with COVID-19 is approaching double the number seen during the worst days of the first wave of the pandemic in April.<\/p>\n

Chief government scientist Patrick Vallance said the new variant could be 30-40 percent more deadly for some age groups, although he stressed the assessment relied on sparse data.<\/p>\n

“There’s a lot of uncertainty around these numbers and we need more work to get a precise handle on it, but it obviously is of concern,” he said, flanking Johnson in Downing Street.<\/p>\n

“You will see that across the different age groups as well, a similar sort of relative increase in the risk.”<\/p>\n

‘Signs of improvement’<\/b><\/p>\n

Britain is in the grip of its third and worst wave of the virus.<\/p>\n

The country is pinning its hopes of a return to normality later this year on the biggest vaccination programme in its history, which began last month.<\/p>\n

Johnson revealed 5.4 million people had now received their first dose of two vaccines currently being administered, with a daily record of 400,000 people inoculated in the last 24 hours.<\/p>\n

“All the current evidence continues to show that both the vaccines we are currently using remain effective both against the old variant and this new variant,” he added.<\/p>\n

The government appears on track to meet its pledge to vaccinate 15 million of the most vulnerable by mid-February.<\/p>\n

It is also aiming to inoculate the entire adult population by September at the latest.<\/p>\n

England has been in a third nationwide lockdown since early this month, with similar restrictions in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, where devolved administrations are responsible for health policy.<\/p>\n

New Office for National Statistics (ONS) data released Friday showed the stay-at-home order had helped prompt a slight drop in infection rates across England last week. <\/p>\n

On average, one in 55 people have got the virus there, rising to one in 35 in London, it found.<\/p>\n

However, chief medical officer Chris Whitty warned that despite the “signs of improvement” cases remained “at a very high level” and hospitals were still in danger of becoming overwhelmed.<\/p>\n

The government said Friday it was launching a new national campaign featuring hospital staff and COVID-19 patients, in a bid to remind the public of the extreme pressures still facing the state-run health service. <\/p>\n

The “emotive” TV advert “challenges the public to think about the impact their actions might have by asking: ‘Can you look them in the eyes and tell them you’re helping by staying at home?'”\n <\/p>\n\n

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Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak\n <\/p><\/div>\n

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\n \u00a9 2021 AFP<\/p>\n

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Citation<\/strong>:
\n Johnson says evidence UK virus strain more deadly (2021, January 22)
\n retrieved 22 January 2021
\n from https:\/\/medicalxpress.com\/news\/2021-01-evidence-uk-coronavirus-strain-deadly.html<\/p>\n

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