A new variant of the pandemic SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is spreading rapidly in the United Kingdom and prompting high levels of concern among its European neighbours, some of which have cut transport links.
The strain, referred to by some experts as the B.1.1.7 lineage, is not the first new variant of the pandemic virus to emerge, but is said to be up to 70 percent more transmissible than the previously dominant strain in the UK.
Are concerns justified?
Most scientists say, yes. The new variant has rapidly become the dominant strain in cases of COVID-19 in parts of southern England, and has been linked to an increase in hospitalisation rates, especially in London and in the adjacent county of Kent.
COVID-19 comorbidities are common and not always visible.
Military personnel are out in force in several remote communities dealing with COVID-19 cases.
Read more: Ottawa s public health unit traced 89 COVID-19 cases and 445 high-risk contacts to a single minor-league hockey practice; a New Brunswick family constructed a plastic bubble to help their son through self-isolation.
A woman poses Monday in front of a 2021 display that will be placed atop a building for New Year s Eve in Times Square in Manhattan. A televised New Year s Eve ceremony will still take place in New York City on Dec. 31 with musical guests, but no public audience. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)
Will COVID Vaccines Work on the New Coronavirus Strain in the U.K.?
On 12/21/20 at 11:13 AM EST
A new strain of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 has been detected in the U.K., prompting concern about its potential effects on coronavirus vaccines. So what do we currently know about this issue?
The new variant, dubbed the B.1.1.7 lineage or VUI–202012/01, was first detected in the southeast of England in September and contains several mutations. U.K. scientists have said that it could be up to 70 percent more transmissible than the original, although it does not appear to cause more severe disease.
Doctor Niall Conroy and his wife Michelle are expecting a baby.
News Christina Ongley
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Subscriber only To say 2020 has been big for Dr Niall Conroy is probably one of the great understatements of the year. The affable Irishman joined Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service in late January to take up a role as the region s new public health physician, and was expecting a quiet and well-planned handover from retiring physician Dr Margaret Young. Instead, he walked into the beginning of a global pandemic and had to hit the ground sprinting in what everyone kept on saying would need to be a marathon effort.