What Pittsburgh region needs to know about U.K. coronavirus strain

A new and seemingly more contagious strain of the coronavirus was diagnosed this week in a Colorado National Guardsman, bringing about a slew of questions regarding its severity and lethality.

Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician, offered his insights into what this new variant of the virus means for the public and the massive vaccination efforts underway across the country.

Question: Is this new strain of covid-19 more contagious than what we’ve been dealing with for the past 10 months?

Adalja: It appears that this variant of SARS-CoV2 (like other variants that have appeared) has developed mutations that render it able to transmit more efficiently from person to person. The variant appeared at a time when cases increased in south-east England and is likely responsible for the surge they’re experiencing.

Q: Are symptoms worse, and will the medical therapies developed over the past 10 months still be effective?

A: There is no evidence that this variant of the virus is more severe or that medications and vaccinations will falter against it.

Q: In all reality, how concerned should we be?

A: The general public shouldn’t panic but the appearance of the variant should cause people to redouble efforts to wash hands, wear face coverings, and avoid crowded places. The same common sense measures will work against this and other strains of the virus.

Q: Will the vaccines that have already been put to use be effective against this new strain?

A: Yes. To date, testing of the vaccines against the new variant show them to be durable against it. It’s important to remember that it is very difficult for a pathogen to escape a vaccine and vaccines induce more than just one antibody but several and also T-cell immunity.

Q: How likely is it that this new strain is already here?

A: It is here and likely has been for some time given that the first identification of the virus in the United States was in an individual who had not travelled meaning he acquired it from a domestic chain of transmission.