All You Need to Know About the Delta & Lambda Variants
In January 2020, it seemed like anything was possible. With a bright and new decade ahead of humanity, new goals were set, and progress seemed to be ready for the taking. By April 2020, the entire world was shut down for what felt like a decade. COVID-19 ravaged the human population and caused an everlasting change to the way we live. Over a year later, a multitude of vaccines have been developed and administered to the public with great success as nearly half of the United States is fully vaccinated and a quarter of the world’s population. Unfortunately, the rise of the Delta & Lambda variants throughout the summer of 2021 has once again caused concern as the pandemic continues to rage. But what exactly makes the Delta & Lambda variant different from the earlier variants of COVID-19, and how exactly did this start?
Originally, the “novel” Coronavirus wasn’t as novel as we’d thought. A novel virus is one that has not previously been recorded. It can be a virus that is isolated from its natural reservoir or isolated as the result of spread to an animal or human host where the virus had not been identified before. Coronaviruses have likely been with humans for centuries but the older known human coronaviruses were first identified in the 1960’s. The reasoning behind the recent Coronavirus outbreak responsible for COVID-19 being considered novel is due to the recent infection of humans. This Coronavirus, among others, is typically found in animals. All Coronaviruses have a genetic material known as RNA, or ribonucleic acid. When you become infected by a virus, it attaches to and invades your cells to then make copies of RNA to help spread throughout your body. Sometimes the copying of the cells can go awry, which leads to mistakes of the cell. This cell mistake is known as a mutation and can happen at random. With the Delta variant & Lambda variant on the rise as mutations of the previous Coronavirus spread, we must now understand exactly what each is.
As of now, the Delta variant is found to be the most contagious and prominent of all strains. The first case was found in India and has since spread from India to just about every other country in the world. It has since become the most dominant strain in the United States. By the end of June 2021, the Delta variant has made up for nearly 20% of all cases and towards the end of July, Delta is responsible for more than 80% of new cases. The growth is happening at a rate that is harder to contain than the original strain by 50% and, although rare, is infecting those who received the COVID-19 vaccine. Those within communities who haven’t received the vaccination are the most at risk, as the transmissibility of the strain could lead to outbreaks at a local level. The Lambda variant is now a new variant of interest according to the World Health Organization, with the first known cases occurring in Peru and now spreading to the rest of the world including the United States. Unfortunately, this new variant has little to no known information on it and how much risk it poses to humanity. The rise of these new variants and the rate at which they spread is concerning. The future of each is unknown as they continue to infect the world and with each seemingly more deadly, it seems inevitable that each strain will be a force to be reckoned with at least within the near future.
The biggest question with the Delta variant is how it differs from the original Covid-19 strain. A study out of Scotland shows that the Delta variant is about twice as likely to result in hospitalization in the unvaccinated population than the alpha strain (original strain). Symptoms for the two strains are similar with some reports of varying symptoms. Cough and loss of smell seem to be less common with the Delta variant whereas headaches, sore throat, runny nose, and fever are the most prominent symptoms. According to the CDC the Delta variant can spread more easily than the original strain. The strain has mutations on the spike proteins that make it easier for it to infect human cells. That leads to people being more contagious if they contract the virus and they can more easily spread it to others. Researchers say that the Delta variant is 50% more contagious than the original strain. Public health experts estimate that the average person who gets infected by the Delta variant spreads it to three or four people as compared to one or two people who are infected with the original strain. This is according to Yale Medicine. Again, not much is known on the Lamba variant, but research is ongoing for both variants. To learn more about all the variants you can go to the link provided below:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/variants/variant-info.html
The Delta variant is present in all 50 states, but public health officials aren’t quite sure yet how the variant will ultimately affect the United States. The variant is the reason for the recent resurgence in new cases. The nationwide 7-day average is now at 37,673. This is up more than 141% from 2 weeks ago according to CDC data. This number is still way off from the pandemic peak of 200,000 new daily cases, but the rate of new cases is still a cause of concern. Every state is currently reporting more new cases of the virus than they did two weeks ago. Arkansas, Florida, Missouri, and Louisiana are current hotspots for the virus. These states are reporting 200 new cases per 100,000 residents over the past week. According to the CDC, more than 93% of new cases in the Plains and Upper Plains states are caused by the Delta variant. In much of the South, the number of cases that can be attributed to the Delta variant is above 80%. The same can be said for New York. Rates are lowest in the Upper Midwest and Northeast. Lockdowns and curfews are back in place for Australia, Bangladesh, and South Africa. New travel restrictions have been put in place in Germany, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Fewer than 700 cases of the Lambda variant have been sequenced in the United States so far. This is out of more than 34 million cases reported to date. Only a tiny fraction of the United States’ cases have been sequenced thus far so that number doesn’t accurately reflect the total number of Lambda cases in the country. Still, fewer than 1% of all U.S cases in the last four weeks have been attributed to the Lambda variant.
The best defense against these variants remains the same, get vaccinated. Based on evidence from clinical trials, two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine appeared to be about 95% effective against the disease and 96% effective in preventing hospitalizations. Reports on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are mixed. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is 66% effective against the disease and 93% effective in preventing hospitalization. A study, that hasn’t been peer reviewed, found that the J&J vaccine’s protection decreased significantly over time suggesting that a booster shot may be needed. Outbreaks are most likely to happen within the unvaccinated population. For now, the CDC has their eyes on both variants, and are continuously monitoring and researching both. Be sure to check out local resources for vaccination events and talk to your doctor to get the facts on the COVID-19 vaccines.
Citations:
https://www.newsweek.com/lambda-vs-delta-what-know-new-covid-variants-compared-us-1612118
https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/5-things-to-know-delta-variant-covid
https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20210712/what-to-know-about-covid-delta-variant
https://fortune.com/2021/07/21/delta-variant-covid-cases-states-where-its-most-prevalent/
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/Pfizer-BioNTech.html