The Ministry of Health and Wellness in St Vincent and the Grenadines has confirmed the presence of the Mu COVID-19 variant in that country.
The ministry said in a media release issued last night that on review of sequencing results for samples sent from St Vincent and the Grenadines to the COVID-19 IMPACT Project Lab through the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), five cases of the Mu variant were detected between July 19 and August 9, 2021.
All cases were detected within the community as contacts of other positive cases and from persons seeking healthcare.
The Ministry of Health is strongly urging strict compliance with all protocols and recommendations in view of the confirmed presence of the Mu variant of interest in the community.
The ministry is also concerned about the increased risk of infection and subsequent transmission of COVID-19 because of the growing frequency of variants of concern in persons entering St Vincent and the Grenadines,
The recommended safety measures include the effective use of masks, physical distancing, hand sanitising and immunisation with available vaccines.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on August 30, 2021, named the variant B.1.621 – Mu, a variant of interest.
A variant of interest (VOI) is one that has genetic differences to the other known variants and is causing infections in multiple countries, and therefore might present a particular threat to public health.
A variant of concern (VOC), is a variant that has been proven to be either more transmissible, cause severe disease or is able to escape the immune response making it more dangerous and so more consequential. A VOI is not a variant of concern.
Mu is the fifth variant of interest to be monitored by WHO since March 2020. The others are the Alpha Variant (formerly called the UK Variant and officially referred to as B.1.1.7), first found in London and Kent, the Beta Variant (formerly called the South Africa Variant and officially referred to as B.1.351), the Gamma Variant (formerly called the Brazil Variant and officially referred to as P.1), and the Delta Variant (formerly called the India Variant and officially referred to as B.1.617.2).
The World Health Organization (WHO) has named the variant B.1.621 – Mu, a variant of interest, describing it as one that has genetic differences to the other known variants and is causing infections in multiple countries.
The latest strain of the coronavirus is more transmittable and able to escape the immune response making it more dangerous..
{The latest strain of the coronavirus is more transmittable and able to escape the immune response making it more dangerous.}
Oh I see. The Moo variant eh.
Aye, can somebody tell me what really was the purpose for taking these medications (farcically called Covid vaccines)?
If what is said about the Mu variant holds true, then uuummm……….what is driving this maddening craze by the authorities to force people to take these Covid medications that don’t prevent one from catching Covid, don’t prevent one from transmitting it to others and for which the argument that these medications prevent serious Covid illness or death is still inconclusive?
The variants make the most of every advantage they get. Humans – not so much.
This is most concerning for the entire Caribbean region as invariably this variant is most likely to invade the other Caribbean territories sooner rather than later.
We have to fortify our immune system, keep our bodies hydrated at all times, vitamin C is essential, eat lots of vegetables, plus practise the three (3) W’s (1. Wearing Masks 2. Washing Hands 3. Watching your Distance).
Seems like COVID-19 will be with us for a long time. We will have to just try our best to manage. But, there is not even a shadow of a doubt that a STIMULUS PACKAGE or two will become inevitable. In fact, this should have been done more than a year ago.
Mr. Skerrit, you have said that Dominicans are not known to be rebellious (paraphasing). However, A Hungry Man Is An Angry Man. Even a very timid dog, when cornered, will strike out at its tormentor.