COVID-19 beta strain responsible for spike in infection in UAE

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

A UAE government health official said that the most common and prominent COVID-19 variant that is spiking up infection in the country is the beta strain.

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Dr Farida Al Hosani, Official Spokesperson for the UAE Healthcare Sector, made the statement during the latest coronavirus briefing on Sunday.

Dr Farida said, “There are a small number of mutations that have been monitored which have caused a change in some characteristics of the COVID-19 virus, such as an increase in the speed of transmission or a change in the severity of the disease associated with it, or the performance of vaccines, therapeutic drugs or diagnostic tools is affected.”

Based on the genetic investigation system in the country, experts find that the most common strain is beta with 39.2%, followed by delta with 33.9% and finally alpha with 11.3%.

Dr Farida elaborated that by following up on the national monitoring systems, “we noticed that the most dominant strains in the country currently are the (alpha), (beta) and (delta) strains, which are mutated strains that have been monitored in many countries of the world.

She said, “We stress the importance of taking the supporting dose, to enhance the body’s immunity and raise the rate of antibodies that increase the resistance to the virus.”

“We stress and call upon everyone to adhere to precautionary and preventive measures, such as wearing a mask, avoiding gatherings and crowded places, and adhering to sterilisation, in order to ensure the protection and safety of everyone.”