COVID warning! According to a new UK study, the Delta variation doubles the chance of hospitalisation
A new study indicates that people infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant have roughly twice the risk of hospitalization as those infected with the Alpha form.
The study, published in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases, examines more than 40,000 Covid-19 cases verified by virus genome sequencing in the UK and discovers a two-fold greater risk of hospitalization from Delta versus Alpha variant infections.
“This study confirms previous findings that people infected with Delta are significantly more likely to require hospitalization than those infected with Alpha, despite the fact that the majority of cases included in the analysis were unvaccinated,” said researcher Gavin Dabrera, Consultant Epidemiologist at Public Health England’s National Infection Service.
“We already know that immunization provides great protection against Delta, and given that this variety accounts for almost 98 percent of Covid-19 cases in the UK, individuals who have not taken two doses of vaccine should do so as soon as possible,” Cabrera noted.
The Delta variation was first reported in India in December 2020, and early investigations indicated it to be up to 50% more transmissible than the Covid-19 type that had previously acquired global domination, known as the alpha variant, which was discovered in Kent, UK.
The scientists analyzed healthcare data from 43,338 positive Covid-19 cases in England between March 29 and May 23, 2021, including vaccination status, emergency care attendance, hospital admission, and other demographic variables, for the study.
Samples of the virus taken from patients in all cases included in the study were subjected to whole-genome sequencing to determine which variation caused the infection.
According to the study, there were 34,656 cases of the Alpha variant (80%) and 8,682 cases of the Delta variant (20%) over the study period.
While the proportion of Delta cases was 20% overall during the research period, it expanded to account for around two-thirds of new Covid-19 cases in the week of May 17, 2021 (65%, 3,973/6,090), showing that it had surpassed alpha to become the prevalent form in England.
Within 14 days of their first positive Covid-19 test, almost one in every 50 patients were admitted to the hospital (2.2 percent Alpha cases, 764/34,656; 2.3 percent Delta cases, 196/8,682).
After controlling for factors known to affect susceptibility to severe Covid-19 diseases, such as age, ethnicity, and immunization status, the researchers discovered that the probability of being admitted to the hospital was more than quadrupled with the Delta variation compared to the alpha variant (2.26-fold increase in risk).
The authors also emphasised the importance of immunisation, stating that several studies have demonstrated that complete vaccination reduces both symptomatic infection and hospitalisation for both Alpha and Delta forms.
