The Delta variant (first detected in India) is responsible for 70% of new symptomatic COVID-19 cases in Bangkok, the Center of Excellence in Clinical Virology at Chulalongkorn University has revealed.
Center Director Dr. Yong Poovorawan said the first outbreak of COVID-19 came early last year with the Wuhan strain, which quickly spread around the world. Infections returned to Thailand in a second outbreak late last year, with a hotspot identified at the central shrimp market in Samut Sakhon. The virus was thought to have spread from Myanmar.
He said the current third outbreak is being dominated by the Alpha (UK) variant which, transmits 1.7 times faster than the Wuhan strain. The first cluster in the third-outbreak was centered on Bangkok’s upscale entertainment district of Thong Lor. The Alpha variant is believed to have spread from Cambodia.
According to the center, the Delta variant is steadily making inroads as the current outbreak persists. It is 1.4 times more transmissible than the Alpha strain. The study also shows that 70% of new patients are infected with the Delta variant and it is not always possible to tell where people caught it. The study predicts the Delta variant will surge, especially in the capital. (NNT)
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