'HINDI AGAD KUMALAT'

OCTA Research: UK virus variant already in Philippines but not widespread

Days after a coronavirus variant initially discovered in the United Kingdom has been detected in the Philippines, a fellow of OCTA Research Team said the new variant could have been in the country already but is not widespread.

“Feeling namin nakapasok na ang bagong variant pero hindi lamang agad kumalat o hindi lamang gaano karami ang kaso,” Dr. Guido David, University of the Philippines–Institute of Mathematics professor and OCTA research fellow, said in an interview on Dobol B sa News TV.

“'Yung mga siniquence ng Philippine Genome Center nag-sequence sila randomly ng samples pero wala pang na-detect. Pero hindi ibig sabihin wala pa talaga rito... Thirty samples ‘yun, randomly selected, pero it’s possible na hindi siya ganu'n karami based sa statistics,” David said.

The Department of Health (DOH) and Philippine Genome Center on Wednesday announced that the UK coronavirus variant has been detected

Believed to have first emerged in the UK in September last year, the coronavirus variant is more infectious but does not appear to make the illness more severe. However, a more transmissible virus means more cases as a result.

The DOH said the patient is a male resident of Quezon City who left for Dubai on December 27 for business purposes and returned to the country on January 7 aboard Emirates Flight No. EK 332.

The patient was swabbed and underwent quarantine in a hotel upon his return to the Philippines.

“Hindi dapat mag-panic ang publiko kahit na nakapasok sa bansa ang bagong variant ng COVID-19,” David said.

“Wala naman kailangang idagdag na health protocol. Kahit walang bagong variant, dapat patuloy pa rin tayong sumunod,” he added. —KG, GMA News