COVID-19: Old Belgian Woman Who Died in March Had Two COVID-19 Variants In Her Body [REPORT]

An old Belgian woman caught two COVID-19 variants. In March, the 90-year-old patient succumbed to the coronavirus after contracting it. On Sunday, July 11, the Belgian media reported that it was the first case that involved a person contracting two variants at once.

Two COVID-19 Variants in Patient's Body

According to CTV News, the people who attended the European Congress on Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) said that the rare case that happened to the old woman in Belgium proves that everyone could contract two coronavirus variants at the same time.

The society which has discussed the case noted that the Belgian woman has acquired the variants from South Africa and Britain which are called Beta and Alpha variants respectively. Moreover, the woman was also unvaccinated which could have further worsened her condition, according to VRT, the country's news broadcaster.

Belgium is still struggling on its vaccination journey on the way to herd immunity. Currently, the programs in the country have been hindered with several delays of the vaccination programs. The European Union for that reason is targeting 70% of the people to have a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible.

Coronavirus Variants Came From Two Different Persons

From the website of VRT, the mentioned coronavirus variants have been around in Belgium in the past months since March, as per OLV hospital molecular biologist Anne Vankeerberghen.

"It is therefore probable that this woman was infected by two different people with two variants of the virus. Unfortunately, we do not know how this infection happened," she added.

For the doctors who witnessed the case, this was the first documented infection with two COVID-19 variants. What they see that could potentially happen is the persistent event that could involve multi-variants.

EU Warns About the Delta Variant

The Delta variant has been one of the fast-rising coronavirus variants that are now hitting Europe. At the moment, the EU said that the variant might become more invasive as we approach summer.

For instance, the said variant is not only becoming more prevalent in the European regions, but also in the United States and Asia. It even reached the point that the Delta variant has affected the upcoming Tokyo Olympics this year.

In March, India's double-mutant coronavirus variant sparked global fear. Previous evidence proved that it is more contagious since it is made up of two strains. Furthermore, the variant has been known to be the culprit in reinfecting people who have already recovered from COVID-19.

The ability of the double-mutant COVID-19 variant starts with its ability to replicate in the spike gene. When this happens, it would be allowed to bypass the antibody neutralization in the patient's body. This is the reason why it could reinfect people quickly.

Experts claimed that despite the mild cases brought by double mutations, the fast rate of reinfection would contribute to the escalating numbers of COVID-19 positive.

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Joseph Henry