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A variant of COVID-19 first found in the UK late last year kills more people than other forms of the virus, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal on Wednesday.
The study compared death rates among those who contracted the new SARS-CoV-2 variant – known as B.1.1.7 – with those infected with other variants.
Infection with the new variant led to 227 deaths in a sample of 54,906 COVID-19 patients, compared with 141 among the same number of patients infected with other variants.
In December, England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said there was "no evidence" the variant was more deadly, but the study now appears to have proved otherwise.
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The B.1.1.7 variant was first detected in the UK in September but despite other countries' efforts to stop it crossing their borders, it has now been found in 100 other nations.
The variant has an unusually high number of mutations within its genetic code and scientists believe that is the reason it is proving to be more deadly than other COVID-19 variants and also why it is 40 to 70 percent more transmissible.
Commenting on the results of the study, Robert Challen a researcher at Exeter University, said: "Coupled with its ability to spread rapidly, this makes B.1.1.7 a threat that should be taken seriously."
A COVID-19 patient is treated at a hospital in the UK, where a study of the mortality rate of the B.1.1.7 variant of the virus has found that it kills more people than other variants. /AFP
A COVID-19 patient is treated at a hospital in the UK, where a study of the mortality rate of the B.1.1.7 variant of the virus has found that it kills more people than other variants. /AFP
Lawrence Young, a virologist and professor of molecular oncology at Warwick University, said the precise mechanisms behind the higher death rate of the B.1.1.7 variant were still not clear, but "could be related to higher levels of virus replication as well as increased transmissibility."
He warned that the variant first found in the UK was likely fueling a recent surge in infections across Europe.
Initial findings from the study were presented to the UK government earlier this year, along with other research, by experts on its New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group, or NERVTAG, panel.
Video editor: Nuno Fernandes
Source(s): Reuters