dr ramji mehrotra - SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant
What is the Delta variant of Covid-19? The highly transmissible COVID-19 delta variant, also known as B1617.2, originated in India in December 2020. According to experts, the Delta strain caused the second wave of COVID-19 in the country which infected millions and led to thousands of deaths. The World Health Organization has named it as the fourth global ‘variant of concern’, along with the those identified in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil. A variant of concern is a virus with changed characteristics such as increased transmissibility and is detrimental to identified safety measures and diagnostics. Fast Spreading Variant The delta variant is spreading fast and has reached over 85 countries within 6 months after discovery. Studies in the UK have found that the delta variant is around 60% more transmissible and more virulent than the alpha variant which was the first variant to be discovered. According to researchers, delta variant is more transmissible than other va