Adviser to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for Medical Affairs, Brigadier General Dr. Adel Al-Wahadneh, said the World Health Organization has identified the micron variant as a variable of concern, with many mutations that may have an impact on how it behaves, how easily it spreads or the severity of the disease it causes.

Al-Wahadna added that transmissibility it was not yet clear whether the mutant was more transmissible (for example, it spreads more easily from person to person) compared to other variables, including delta, and the number of people who tested positive for the virus increased in areas of South Africa affected by this variant. , but epidemiological studies are underway to understand whether this is due to the mutant micron or other factors.

Al-Wahadna explained that the severity of the disease is not yet clear whether infection causes more serious disease compared to infection with other variables, including delta, and preliminary data indicate that there are increasing rates of hospitalization in South Africa, but this may be due to the increase in the overall numbers of people who They become infected, not as a result of a specific infection with a micron, and there is currently no information to suggest that its associated symptoms differ from those of other variants, as were the primary infections reported among college students — younger individuals who tend to have milder disease — but understanding The severity level of the micron variant will take several weeks, plus all variants of COVID-19, including the worldwide prevalent delta variant, can cause severe illness or death, especially for the most vulnerable.

He noted that WHO is working with technical partners to understand the potential impact of this alternative on our current countermeasures, including vaccines, and current vaccines remain effective against severe disease and death, and widely used PCR tests continue to detect infection.

He stressed that the treatments that have been approved are effective in managing patients with severe COVID-19, and other treatments will be evaluated to see if they are still effective given the changes in parts of the virus in the micron variant, as the World Health Organization encourages countries to contribute to Collect and share hospital patient data through the WHO Clinical Data Platform in order to quickly describe clinical characteristics and patient outcomes.

Al-Wahadna added that the recommended measures are based on strengthening surveillance and sequencing of cases in countries, and countries must continue to implement effective public health measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in general, in addition to that it is very important to address inequalities in access to COVID-vaccines. 19 urgently to ensure vulnerable groups everywhere, including health workers and the elderly, get their first and second doses, along with equitable access to treatment and diagnosis.