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Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed the death of a patient carrying the most recent variant of the coronavirus, the first in the territory. Hours before, the politician announced that the third doses of inoculations will begin in December and not in January as planned to stop the spread of infections. Meanwhile, Oxford published a report that records antibody deficiencies in people with two injections.
A state of alarm has been unleashed in recent hours in the United Kingdom after a string of discouraging news regarding the new wave of the coronavirus and the Omicron variant. Although at the beginning of this onslaught of the pandemic it was believed that the British territory would suffer little from having suffered another Covid-19 outbreak weeks ago, those estimates failed.
Now in London they are reviewing strategies and restrictions to avoid a delicate situation again. Among the decisions are to establish teleworking in all possible cases, the mandatory use of masks in closed places and the use of the health pass for shows and food places, among others.
However, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Monday that the first person was killed by the Omicron in the UK. The variant, in London alone, accounts for 40% of cases today.
Speaking to the press during a tour of a vaccination center in the Paddington neighborhood, the president said that “sadly, Ómicron is causing hospitalizations and at least one patient has died.”
In addition, he tried to banish the concept that the new variant is a less harmful version than the others, pointing out that they must “recognize the speed with which its spread in the population is accelerating” and that it is vital to get the booster dose.
At this point, last Sunday the chief executive reported that the complement injection against Covid-19 will be available in England in the last fortnight of December, a month earlier than was planned. It will be for all those over 18 years of age who have been vaccinated at least three months ago with the second dose.
The objective is to combat, with the measures and the third dose, the “tide” of infections that they believe will reach the country in the European winter and avoid a collapse in hospitals and intensive care units, places that already receive patients infected by Omicron.
“I trust that citizens understand, and also colleagues in Parliament, and throughout the country, that the measures we introduce are balanced and proportionate,” he justified after noting that the British position “is incomparably better than last year.”
Oxford advises that carrying two doses will not be enough
British scientists found, and published in a report on Monday, that having a two-inoculation schedule will not generate the necessary amount of neutralizing antibodies against the Omicron variant.
The Oxford University researchers obtained these results, which were not reviewed by other colleagues, after analyzing blood samples from people who received vaccines from AstraZeneca-Oxford or Pfizer-BioNTech.
NEW STUDY: Oxford researchers have analyzed the impact of the Omicron # COVID19 variant on one of the immune responses generated by vaccination.
The results indicate that Omicron has the potential to drive a further wave of infections, including among those already vaccinated.
– University of Oxford (@UniofOxford) December 13, 2021
However, the study does not provide evidence that a low level of Omicron fighting antibodies may lead to an increased risk of serious illness, hospitalization or death for those who did not receive the booster dose.
“These data are important, but they are only part of the picture. They only look at the neutralizing antibodies after the second dose, but they do not inform us about cellular immunity, and this will also be tested,” explained the professor and co-author of the paper. Matthew Snape.
With EFE and Reuters
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