Covid-19: Don’t let your guard down yet, warn doctors as Deltacron emerges

With the emergence of Deltacronmdasha combination of the Delta and Omicron variantsmdashhealthcare experts and the WHO have advised people to be extra vigilant amid fears of a fourth wave around June They say the new variant is a stable one thus making it more challenging to control and treat as compared to the previous variantsThe new variant was first confirmed in Southern France and has since been reported from the US Germany and Netherlands A genome test of the new variant was published on March 8 in international journal lsquomedRxivrsquo Meanwhile Covid19 is spreading fast in Hong Kong with nearly 32000 daily cases and in China which has seen an exponential growth in the number of cases in the past few daysDr Wiqar Shaikh professor of Medicine Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals said Deltacron is a hybrid variant arising through a process called ldquorecombinationrdquo in which two variants exchange genetic materials to create a new offspring He added that the backbone of the new variant comes from the Delta variant while the spike protein comes from the Omicron variant These findings regarding Deltacron has been independently confirmed by researchers at the Pasteur Institute in ParisDr Santosh Bansode Wockhardt HospitalsQuoting the WHO Dr Shaikh said Deltacron has a very intense circulation and infects both humans and animals with a possibility of reinfection from animals Several scientific studies are underway to determine the severity and transmissibility of this variant he said adding that genomic surveillance must be maintained to detect and characterise all recombination viruseslsquoMay fuel 4th waversquoldquoThe previous variants were unstable and their mutations can be quickly lost Deltacron is the first recombinant variant and it is stable and is formed to stay for the foreseeable future Hence the new variants poses a greater risk and should start to ring alarm bells across the world Health systems should quickly alert populations to return to masks and physical distancing Some viral modellers have predicted that the next Covid wave in India in JuneJuly will be caused by some of these new recombinant variantsrdquo said Dr Subhash Hira professor of Global Health at the University of WashingtonSeattle and advisor to WHOTDRGenevaHe added ldquoWhile Covid19 was primarily affecting the respiratory system the emergence of variants has broadened its pathology to include the heart brain intestines kidneys liver eyes and blood systems Overall anxiety and depression including other mental illnesses that were considered prevalent among 10 per cent of the worldrsquos population before the pandemic have now increased to 15 per cent It will require a massive refurbishment of the mental healthcare system to provide care prevention and control servicesrdquoDocsrsquo adviceldquoThe Delta variant had high mortality while Omicron was extremely contagious As the hybrid variant is a combination of the two health authorities from various countries have raised caution about this leading to additional waves However the World Health Organisation has not as yet classified this as a variant of concern Emergence of variants is a known phenomenon associated with viruses Therefore the best advice to citizens is appropriate use of the mask in addition to vaccinationrdquo said Dr Ketan Vagholkar professor of Surgery at DY Patil Medical CollegeldquoWhile most people have received two doses of vaccine and several have gotten infected in the past leading to the formation of antibodies we know that antibodies dip with time So there is a risk of spread of Deltacronrdquo said Dr Santosh Bansode Head of the Department Emergency Medicine Wockhardt Hospitals Mumbai CentralldquoAs Covid19 cases have seen a gradual drop masks are not compulsory in many countries And it will be the case in India soon In this scenario if the new variant starts spreading we may face problems again We must observe whatrsquos happening in countries where this variant has been detected We must not relax and should always remain careful and watchfulrdquo Dr Bansode said