Jammu: Recent epidemiological studies have suggested the role of the new SARS-CoV-2 variants for ragging second COVID wave in India including Jammu and Kashmir. The sudden increase in the number of COVID related deaths in J&K especially in Jammu raised an alarm about the circulating variant of concern (B.1.617.2) in Jammu, which was proved right by the study, said Dr Shashi Sudhan Principle and Dean GMC Jammu.
Dr Sudhan further said that the COVID positive samples are routinely sent to Indian SARS CoV-2 Consortium of Genomics (INSACOG) for genomic sequencing and analysis of circulating COVID-19 viruses and several variants have been reported in Jammu.
Dr Sudhan said “There is available information to suggest that the increased transmissibility and increased deaths in the month of May were linked to the variant of concern”.
As per the recent data of Covid-19 Positives samples sent from Department of Microbiology, GMC Jammu to National Centre for Disease Control, Delhi, for genetic sequencing, 68.5% of the tested positive patients were reported to have variant of concern i.e. B.1.617.2, generally known as the double mutant and been classified as being “of concern” by the WHO.
The PMC further said that the mortality rate among patients admitted in the HDU of GMC, Jammu was 62.5% in those infected with the ‘variant of concern,’ with a very high number of young patients, indicating the higher public health implications of the variant.
Dr. Sharma further added that “among those patients admitted 58.4% were reported to have B.1.617.2 ( THE VARIANT OF CONCERN ); 22.47% were reported to have B.1 mutation, 6.74% were having B.1.1 mutant, 3.37% had B.1.617.1 variant while as 1.1% had B .1.1.7 the UK variant. Further ,she added that 2.247% of admitted patients were reported to have no mutant at all.
