London: coronavirus infection in England Last month, one in 16 or 6.37 percent tested positive for Covid-19 climbed to a new record high – more than double the 35 reported in February, according to a new study.
The experts behind the long-running Real-time Assessment of Community Transmission (REACT-1) analysis in the UK Imperial College London found that infections were doubling every 30 days with estimated fertility numbers, or the rate at which infections multiplied, above the cut-off mark of 1.07.
According to the study’s surveillance data released on Wednesday, the majority of the positive samples analyzed were based on nearly 110,000 swab tests taken between March 8 and 31. omicron BA.2 “stealth variant”, so named because of the absence of certain genetic changes that can easily distinguish this variant from others.
“These trends are concerning since very high numbers of people are infected, more people may become seriously ill and need to go to hospital,” said the professor. Paul ElliotDirector of the REACT program from the Imperial School of Public Health.
“Although the restrictions are in place, I would urge people to still behave with caution to help protect others who may be vulnerable, and avoid contact with other people if you have symptoms. This will help slow down the spread of the virus and reduce its impact on NHS And our lives are wider as we enter this next phase of the pandemic,” he said.
A small number of recombinant Omicron variants – Xe and Xl – were also detected during surveillance, which are hybrids of the original ba.1 oomicron strain and the ba.2 mutation. It previously emerged that UK health experts are currently monitoring and studying the XE strain.
The REACT research noted that because the numbers of these recombinants were so small, it is not possible to tell from the data whether these types are more transmissible than others.
Compared to previous figures, infections have increased across all age groups and are highest among primary school-aged children, with almost one in 10 to 11-year-olds testing positive.
However, the most recent trends suggest that the rate of new infections is likely to slow or fall in younger groups between the ages of five and 54. This was not seen in older people over the age of 55, where infections were still on the rise. The oldest age group, aged 75 and above, nearly tripled to 4.61 percent.
Researchers told that booster vaccines were introduced by the UK National Health Service (NHS) in September last year, started with older age groups. Young people therefore received their third dose more recently than older people, which may partly explain the differences.
The experts behind the long-running Real-time Assessment of Community Transmission (REACT-1) analysis in the UK Imperial College London found that infections were doubling every 30 days with estimated fertility numbers, or the rate at which infections multiplied, above the cut-off mark of 1.07.
According to the study’s surveillance data released on Wednesday, the majority of the positive samples analyzed were based on nearly 110,000 swab tests taken between March 8 and 31. omicron BA.2 “stealth variant”, so named because of the absence of certain genetic changes that can easily distinguish this variant from others.
“These trends are concerning since very high numbers of people are infected, more people may become seriously ill and need to go to hospital,” said the professor. Paul ElliotDirector of the REACT program from the Imperial School of Public Health.
“Although the restrictions are in place, I would urge people to still behave with caution to help protect others who may be vulnerable, and avoid contact with other people if you have symptoms. This will help slow down the spread of the virus and reduce its impact on NHS And our lives are wider as we enter this next phase of the pandemic,” he said.
A small number of recombinant Omicron variants – Xe and Xl – were also detected during surveillance, which are hybrids of the original ba.1 oomicron strain and the ba.2 mutation. It previously emerged that UK health experts are currently monitoring and studying the XE strain.
The REACT research noted that because the numbers of these recombinants were so small, it is not possible to tell from the data whether these types are more transmissible than others.
Compared to previous figures, infections have increased across all age groups and are highest among primary school-aged children, with almost one in 10 to 11-year-olds testing positive.
However, the most recent trends suggest that the rate of new infections is likely to slow or fall in younger groups between the ages of five and 54. This was not seen in older people over the age of 55, where infections were still on the rise. The oldest age group, aged 75 and above, nearly tripled to 4.61 percent.
Researchers told that booster vaccines were introduced by the UK National Health Service (NHS) in September last year, started with older age groups. Young people therefore received their third dose more recently than older people, which may partly explain the differences.