UK study: people infected with Delta more likely to require hospitalisation than those with Alpha

UK study: people infected with Delta more likely to require hospitalisation than those with Alpha
August 28, 2021, 8:30 am

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The Sky News reported, a UK study suggests, people who become infected with the Delta variant of COVID-19 are twice as likely to be admitted to hospital as those who have the Alpha variant.

The Sky News said, the study, which carried out by Public Health England and Cambridge University, its authors say that it is the first of its kind to compare the hospitalisation risk of the two variants and highlights the need for people to be fully vaccinated.

According to the Sky News, Dr Gavin Dabrera, a consultant epidemiologist at the National Infection Service, Public Health England, said: "This study confirms previous findings that people infected with Delta are significantly more likely to require hospitalisation than those with Alpha, although most cases included in the analysis were unvaccinated.

He said: "We already know that vaccination offers excellent protection against Delta and as this variant accounts for over 98% of COVID-19 cases in the UK, it is vital that those who have not received two doses of vaccine do so as soon as possible."

In the study, researchers analysed healthcare data from 43,338 positive cases in England between 29 March and 23 May 2021, including information on vaccination status, emergency care attendance, hospital admission, and other demographic characteristics.

In all cases included in the study, samples of the virus taken from patients underwent whole-genome sequencing to confirm which variant had caused the infection.

During the study period, there were 34,656 cases of the Alpha variant (80%) and 8,682 cases of the Delta variant (20%).

Around one in 50 patients were admitted to the hospital within 14 days of their first positive COVID-19 test and the researchers found the risk of being admitted to hospital was more than doubled with the Delta variant compared to the Alpha variant.

Less than 2% of COVID-19 cases in each study had received both doses of the vaccine, 74% of cases were unvaccinated and 24% had received one dose.

Dr Anne Presanis, one of the study's lead authors from the University of Cambridge, said: "Our analysis highlights that in the absence of vaccination, any Delta outbreaks will impose a greater burden on healthcare than an Alpha epidemic."

Source: skynews

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