HK Logs 1st Case of COVID-19 Variant Found in South Africa

Hong Kong Logs 1st Case of New COVID-19 Variant Found in South Africa

Hong Kong reported its first case of a new coronavirus variant that is spreading in South Africa.

In a Nov. 25 press release, the Department of Health (DH) confirmed that a traveller from South Africa and another hotel guest tested positive for the new variant called Omicron following a whole genome sequencing analysis by the University of Hong Kong. The DH said the sequences are similar to those found in South Africa and Botswana. Both patients are fully vaccinated.

The two cases are part of the six additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported on Nov. 25, bringing the total number of cases in Hong Kong to 12,418.

The World Health Organization classified Omicron as a "variant of concern."

“We don’t know very much about this yet. What we do know is that this variant has a large number of mutations. And the concern is that when you have so many mutations, it can have an impact on how the virus behaves,” said Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead on COVID-19, during a special meeting called on Nov. 26 to discuss the latest variant and its impact on vaccines.

Article amended at 10 AM on Nov. 29, 2021, to reflect the World Health Organization's revised classification for Omicron.


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