We’re sequencing new sample to determine new variant – NCDC

Moses Emorinken, Abuja

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Tuesday stated that it has begun the process of sequencing COVID-19 samples to determine whether the new variant found in the United Kingdom (UK) is in the country.

back link building services=0></a></div><p>Stating that it suspects that the UK variant of the virus is already in the country, the NCDC stressed that only sequencing can determine that, and the process will take some weeks.</p><p>The agency further disclosed that the new variant has not been linked with difference in known symptoms and severity in cases. It said the new variant is only linked with a higher transmission, which is evident in the rise in the number of new cases in recent times.</p><p>The Director-General of the NCDC, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, disclosed this during the Presidential Task Force on covid-19 briefing in Abuja.</p><p>He said, “We know that there is a new variant of the virus circulating in the UK but like we have said severally, there are new variants of viruses appearing all the time. The question is whether this new variant is associated with any increase in transmission or severity. We don’t know that yet but we suspect that this variant is already in Nigeria. It will be surprising if it is not, but we simply don’t know yet.</p><div class='code-block code-block-5' style='margin: 8px 0; clear: both;'> <a href=https://www.adhang.com/guest-posting-services/ ><img class=lazy src=

NCDC: adequate preparedness will checkmate resurgence

“The World Health Organization (WHO) is leading in a more global assessment of how prevalent this new variant is and whether it is actually associated with increased transmission in other countries in the world.

“The new variant of the virus is not associated with any difference in symptoms or severity or outcomes. The single difference that we found is that it is more transmissible from one person to the other, and therefore, obviously the numbers add up and we have more cases and it becomes a bigger burden. The proportion of people that are severe has been fairly constant around the world. We are seeing an increase in cases now.”

Concerning the circulation of videos portraying a negative narrative for vaccines, the WHO Country Representative, Dr. Walter Kazadi, urged Nigerians to disregard such materials stating that they lack credibility. He urged people to analyse the source and credibility of information before sharing on various social media platforms.