London, April 13 A study released by University College London on the 13th said that a sample survey showed that the variant novel coronavirus B.1.1.7 reported in the United Kingdom was not related to the severity and mortality rate of patients admitted to the novel coronavirus. The relevant research results have been published in the British journal Lancet Infectious Diseases.
A team led by researchers at University College London analyzed the condition of 496 coronavirus patients admitted to two British hospitals between November 9 and December 20 last year and selected 341 samples. The researchers compared the severity of patients infected with B.1.1.7 variant virus and patients infected with non-variant viruses. They found that 36% of patients infected with variant viruses developed severe or died, while the proportion of patients infected with non-variant viruses was 38%.
The research team pointed out that there is no evidence to link B.1.1.7 variant virus to the aggravation of symptoms of patients. However, after analyzing the nucleic acid test sample data of patients, the team found that the virus load in the samples infected with B.1.1.7 variant virus patients was higher than patients infected with non-variant viruses.
“The persistence of different variant COVID-19 can have a greater impact on the treatment and care of patients, so it is necessary to continue to strengthen research and be vigilant in this regard,” said Mervin Singh, a professor at University College London.
However, the researchers also pointed out that the study still has some limitations. For example, the severity of the disease of COVID-19 patients was recorded within 14 days after the positive test, but the disease may worsen after 14 days, which may not be included in the analysis.
