) – January 6, 2021 – 12:00am
CEBU, Philippines — A local health official has warned the new strain of COVID-19 may have already reached the country.
Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, Department of Health- Central Visayas chief pathologist and COVID-19 spokesperson, said the health department is not discounting the possibility that the new coronavirus variant may already be here.
“If you look at it that way na September pa lang, it was already there, and there were a lot of travels to and from Singapore, Hongkong, everywhere in the entire world. So there is really a good possibility that it is with us also,” she said in yesterday’s virtual presser.
The new COVID-19 variant known as BC117 was first detected in the United Kingdom in September last year. In November, around a quarter of the reported COVID-19 cases in the country were found to be of the new variant of the SARS-CoV2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
Loreche, however, clarified that medical experts in the country have yet to do a research if the new coronavirus strain has in fact entered the country.
She said conducting genomic sequencing is necessary to help confirm the presence of the new strain of COVID here.
Unfortunately, the said process is still not available in Central Visayas.
“The reason why we cannot confirm its presence here is that we need to do a genomic sequencing for us to know, kung naa gyud na si BC117,” said Loreche.
Moreover, All RT-PCR positive specimens from countries with confirmed UK variant underwent genomic sequencing last Monday at the Philippine Genome Center (PGC). The findings are expected to be released either later this week or early next week.
No positive samples from the 21 countries flagged down by the Philippine government so far here in Cebu.
Should there be any, the samples will be sent to the PGC for the needed genomic sequencing.
Today, Loreche is set to meet with the different molecular laboratories in Central Visayas to discus with the necessary processes and protocols in the sample collection including those that will be sent to the PGC.
Even with the latest development in COVID-19, DOH maintains that following the minimum health standards, including wearing of face mask, social distancing and regular washing of hands remain the “universally effective way to prevent against any mutation, variant or strain.”
Health experts have said that viruses naturally mutate.
To date, experts have detected 12,706 mutations of SARS-CoV2. Of these, 398 strains of the novel coronavirus were found to have occurred repeatedly and independently. — KQD (FREEMAN)