A new variant of the novel coronavirus has emerged? 637 cases have been found! Will it be impossible to eliminate the virus? Wu Zunyou responded

From 0:00 to 24:00 on April 1, 2,129 new confirmed cases were reported in 31 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities) and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, including 43 imported cases (22 in Sichuan, 8 in Beijing, 4 in Guangdong, 2 in Shanghai, 2 in Shandong, 2 in Guangxi, 1 in Liaoning, 1 in Zhejiang, and 1 in Yunnan), including 22 cases converted from asymptomatic infections to confirmed cases (20 in Sichuan, 1 in Zhejiang, and 1 in Guangdong);

2086 local cases:

Including 44 cases converted from asymptomatic infections to confirmed cases (20 in Jilin, 10 in Fujian, 4 in Shandong, 3 in Zhejiang, 2 in Shanghai, 1 in Tianjin, 1 in Jiangsu, 1 in Hainan, 1 in Sichuan, and 1 in Yunnan). No new deaths. No new suspected cases.

On that day, 4,307 cured cases were discharged from hospital, 34,977 close contacts were released from medical observation, and the number of severe cases decreased by 8 compared with the previous day.

There are 661 confirmed cases (no severe cases) and 19 suspected cases imported from abroad. A total of 17,553 cases have been confirmed, 16,892 cases have been cured and discharged, and there are no deaths.

As of 24:00 on April 1, according to reports from 31 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government) and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, there are 27,128 confirmed cases (including 58 severe cases), 121,466 cured and discharged cases, 4,638 deaths, 153,232 confirmed cases, and 19 suspected cases. A total of 2,363,645 close contacts have been traced, and 369,331 close contacts are still under medical observation.

31 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities) and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps reported 7,869 new asymptomatic infections, including 80 imported cases and 7,789 local cases:

A total of 321,948 confirmed cases have been reported from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Among them, 298,237 cases were reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (48,654 discharged and 7,945 died), 82 cases were reported in the Macao Special Administrative Region (82 discharged), and 23,629 cases were reported in Taiwan (13,742 discharged and 853 died).

Is there another variant of the new coronavirus? 637 cases have been found in the UK!

Recently, the British government's official website released news reporting the recombination of three new coronavirus variants. Data showed that 637 cases of XE (i.e., the recombination of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2) have been found in the UK.

According to the website, when an individual is infected with two or more new coronavirus variants at the same time, a recombinant variant is generated. This is not uncommon, and several cases of new coronavirus variant recombination have been found during the new coronavirus pandemic.

The UK Health and Safety Agency (UKHSA) analyzed three situations, namely XE, which is the recombination of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2, and XD and XF, which are the recombination of Delta and Omicron BA.1.

Data shows that a total of 38 cases of XF and 637 cases of XE have been found in the UK; no cases of XD have been found yet, but 49 cases have been reported in global databases, most of which are in France.

Regarding XE cases, Professor Hopkins, chief medical adviser of UKHSA, specifically pointed out that there is not enough evidence to draw conclusions about its transmissibility, severity or vaccine effectiveness.

File photo: At the Rocky Health Center in Dundee, Scotland, a nurse injects the new crown vaccine into an 82-year-old man.

Omicron variant BA.2 becomes the dominant strain in the United States

According to statistics from Johns Hopkins University in the United States, as of now, the cumulative number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States has exceeded 80 million. According to reports, the latest estimates released by the CDC on the 29th local time showed that the Omicron variant BA.2 has become the dominant strain spreading in the United States. According to the agency's model, in the week ending March 26, infections caused by BA.2 accounted for 51% to 59% of COVID-19 infections in the United States, higher than the estimated 39% in the previous week.

WHO: The coronavirus will continue to evolve

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus recently said that existing research shows that the most likely scenario is that the new coronavirus will continue to evolve, but as human immunity increases due to vaccination or infection with the virus, the severity of the disease caused by the new coronavirus will decrease over time.

Tedros pointed out that the best case scenario is the emergence of a less severe variant, which does not require booster shots or adjustments to the vaccine composition. The worst case scenario is the emergence of a more pathogenic and highly contagious variant, in which case the protection provided by previous vaccination or infection will quickly weaken.

The number of local infections in March has exceeded 100,000! The National Health Commission emphasized this point

On the afternoon of April 1, the State Council’s Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism held a press conference to introduce the national epidemic prevention and control work since March.

The total number of local infections in March was 103,965

Affecting 29 provinces

Mi Feng, spokesperson of the National Health Commission, said that in March, the global epidemic was still in the pandemic stage, and the epidemic in neighboring countries and regions was showing signs of outbreak.

The number of newly confirmed local cases and asymptomatic infections in my country is increasing rapidly. The epidemic has spread in multiple locations and the scope of impact has further expanded. Community transmission in some areas has not yet been blocked and there have been reports of spillover cases. The prevention and control situation is severe and complex.

Lei Zhenglong, deputy director of the National Health Commission's Disease Control and Prevention Bureau, said that in March, a total of 103,965 cases of local infections were reported nationwide, affecting 29 provinces, with the characteristics of numerous points, wide coverage and frequent occurrence.

Among them, there are two provinces with more than 10,000 cases:

The epidemic in Jilin Province is still in the development stage, with more than 44,000 cases reported cumulatively, and community transmission in the controlled area of ​​Changchun City, Jilin Province has not been blocked;

The epidemic situation in Shanghai is in a rapid increasing stage, with more than 36,000 cases reported cumulatively, and the number of infections will continue to increase in the near future.

Recently, 90% of the newly reported infections nationwide are from these two provinces and cities.

Why are there fewer asymptomatic cases turning into confirmed cases recently?

Wang Guiqiang, director of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Peking University First Hospital, said that asymptomatic infections include two types of people: those in the incubation period and those who are persistently asymptomatic. The reason why asymptomatic cases have decreased:

① Active large-scale nucleic acid testing was carried out, and those infected in the incubation period were detected even before they showed symptoms;

② The proportion of severe cases and symptomatic cases among Omicron-infected patients has dropped significantly, and many patients have no symptoms from beginning to end; coupled with the basis of vaccination, the number of asymptomatic infections has increased;

③It should be emphasized that during clinical interviews, patients may feel good about themselves, and some symptoms may be missed if they are not asked in detail. Only through careful questioning can we truly find patients with symptoms.

The death toll during the Omicron epidemic was higher than that during Delta

Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that although there was a certain proportion of asymptomatic people during the Omicron epidemic, its transmission speed was fast, resulting in a large number of infections in a short period of time, and the total number of deaths caused was quite high.

By analyzing the data released by relevant countries, it was found that the number of deaths caused by the Omicron strain during the epidemic was higher than the number of deaths caused by the Delta strain during the same period. This shows that the epidemic of the Omicron strain is very harmful to a country or region. Therefore, we must strive to control the epidemic in a short period of time.

The overall epidemic situation in most parts of the country is improving

Lei Zhenglong, deputy director of the Disease Control and Prevention Bureau of the National Health Commission and first-level inspector, introduced that from March 1 to 31, five provinces had reported a cumulative number of more than 1,000 cases of infection, and 12 provinces had reported a cumulative number of between 100 and 1,000 cases of infection.

• In Shenyang, Liaoning, Tangshan, Hebei, and Quanzhou, Fujian, the risk of community transmission of the epidemic remains high.
• The overall epidemic situation in Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other provinces has improved.
• The overall epidemic situation in Guangdong is stable, but the pressure to prevent imported cases exists at all times.
• All the infections reported in Beijing in the past five days were from controlled personnel, and the overall epidemic situation is stable.

The overall epidemic situation in most parts of the country is improving, which also shows that the prevention and control measures are effective. However, my country's epidemic prevention and control is still facing great pressure to prevent imported cases and domestic rebound. At the same time, the risk of Omicron epidemic occurring in multiple places at the same time still exists, and the prevention and control situation remains severe and complex.

Will it be impossible to clear to zero? Wu Zunyou responded!

At the meeting, a reporter asked: Since the beginning of this year, especially since the Omicron variant was introduced into my country, our COVID-19 epidemic has been rising and falling, giving people a feeling that it is difficult to control. I would like to ask, will our country be unable to achieve zero cases?

Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, replied: Based on our country's prevention and control experience over the past two years and our new understanding of the changes in the new coronavirus, I personally believe that our country can achieve the goal of "dynamic zero."

It should be acknowledged that the Omicron variant is highly contagious and spreads rapidly, and there is a certain proportion of asymptomatic infections, making dynamic zero-clearing more difficult and the time required for dynamic zero-clearing may be longer. However, as long as we strictly, practically and quickly implement prevention and control measures in every link, we will definitely be able to achieve the goal of dynamic zero-clearing.

The main challenge in achieving dynamic zero under the new situation is that the new characteristics of the spread of the Omicron variant strain, which is hidden and fast, require us to have a more sensitive monitoring system so that we can detect the epidemic earlier and implement various prevention and control measures more quickly. In these processes, we especially need everyone's cooperation, especially the discovery of early cases. The active cooperation of patients is particularly important for early detection and epidemic control.

Wu Zunyou:

Do not choose to go on an outing across provinces during the Qingming Festival

Wu Zunyou said that during the Qingming Festival holiday, if you plan to go out for an outing or a picnic, you must pay attention to the implementation of personal protection measures for the normalized prevention and control of the new crown epidemic.

In areas with the epidemic, it is not recommended to go outing or picnic. In areas without the epidemic, you should choose the location of outing or picnic reasonably, and do not choose to go outing or picnic across provinces.

When traveling, it is best to drive yourself; if you take public transportation, you must pay attention to personal protective measures such as wearing masks, hand hygiene, and maintaining social distance.

More than 10 positive passengers were found on the two trains.

68 close contacts were found in one place!

On the afternoon of April 1, the Wenzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Zhejiang Province issued an announcement. The announcement pointed out that the recent COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control situation in cities around Zhejiang Province is complex and severe, and imported cases from Zhejiang Province have occurred frequently. Yesterday, one new positive case was reported in Ruian, Wenzhou, who was a passenger in the adjacent carriage of the D3141 train with a confirmed case from another province. According to preliminary statistics, as of the morning of April 1, a total of more than 10 positive cases were found among passengers who had taken the D3205 and D3141 trains on March 28.

According to a report released by the Office of the Leading Group for the Prevention and Control of the New Coronavirus Pneumonia Epidemic in Cangnan County, Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province on April 1, statistics showed that a total of 17 positive cases were found among the passengers who took the D3205 and D3141 trains on March 28, including 68 close contacts and 321 secondary close contacts in the county.

Both announcements stated that there is a risk of infection due to contact with COVID-19 positive cases. An urgent survey is being conducted on the personnel on the D3205 and D3141 trains on March 28. If you have taken the train during the above time, please report to the local street office, community (village) as soon as possible and cooperate with nucleic acid testing and related epidemic prevention and control measures.

The reporter found that D3141 is a high-speed train from Nanjing, Jiangsu to Longyan, Fujian, passing through 23 stations in total, including Changzhou, Suzhou, Wuxi, Shanghai, Jiaxing, Hangzhou and other places.

D3205 is a train from Shanghai Hongqiao to Xiamen North, passing through 18 stations, including Shanghai, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Wenzhou, etc. Currently, D3205 has been suspended.

D3141 train

Three places reported related infections

According to incomplete statistics based on public information, three places have reported related infections on the D3141 train on March 28.

On March 30, one new positive case was reported in Ruian, Wenzhou, Zhejiang. The patient was a person in the adjacent carriage of the D3141 train with a confirmed case from another province.

From 0:00 to 5:00 on March 31, one new asymptomatic case of the novel coronavirus was reported in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. The patient was a person from an epidemic-stricken area in another province. He was placed in centralized isolation after arriving at Linping South Station on March 28 by train (D3141, car 01, car 09C, and had been to car 6 on the way).

On March 31, during the nucleic acid test of people in centralized isolation in Fu'an City, Ningde City, Fujian Province, a person named Huang who entered Fu'an from abroad was found to be positive in the initial screening, and was later confirmed to be positive by the Ningde City Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The person was isolated in Nantong, Jiangsu Province from March 7 to March 28. After the isolation ended, he took the D3141 train to Fu'an Station on March 28. After arriving at the station, he was transferred to the centralized isolation point in a "point-to-point" closed-loop manner and has been isolated ever since.

D3205 train related to epidemic

Related to the evasion of inspection by those who tested positive in the initial screening

The outbreak on D3205 on March 28 was related to a patient named Zeng who evaded inspection and tested positive. Knowing that he tested positive for nucleic acid, he evaded inspection and took the train back to Putian, Fujian, resulting in close contact with 201 people in the same carriage. At present, many places have reported infections on the same train.

According to incomplete statistics based on public information, as of 12:00 on April 1, among the newly confirmed positive cases in many places in Fujian, a total of 10 people, including Zeng Mou, had taken the D3205 train on the 28th.

1 case in Putian

Zeng, a patient with a positive re-test in Hanjiang District, Putian:

On March 15, he went to a district in Shanghai;

On the 25th, he developed symptoms of cough and runny nose;

On the 27th, the nucleic acid test in a hospital in Shanghai was initially positive;

After receiving a notice from relevant Shanghai authorities on the morning of the 28th that he would undergo a nucleic acid re-examination, he refused to cooperate. Knowing that he might have been infected with the new coronavirus, he purchased a ticket and took the D3205 train from Shanghai to Putian Station on the morning of the 28th, and then took an online taxi home.

Ningde 3 cases

On the morning of March 31, Dongqiao Development Zone conducted a COVID-19 nucleic acid test on the quarantined personnel. Initial screening found that a quarantined person, Zhu Moumou, tested positive for nucleic acid, which was confirmed positive by the Ningde Center for Disease Control and Prevention. He had taken the D3205 (carriage 05, carriage 06A) train from Shanghai Hongqiao to Ningde at 9:30 on March 28 and arrived at Ningde Station at 15:30.

In the early morning of March 30, Jiaocheng District found that a person from Shanghai, Jia Moumou, tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the nucleic acid test of people who had been quarantined. The Ningde Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that he was positive. He had taken the D3205 (carriage 04, carriage 7F) train from Shanghai to Jiaocheng at 9:25 on March 28 and arrived at Ningde Station at 15:20.

At 14:00 on March 30, the Jiaocheng District Center for Disease Control and Prevention found that a quarantined person, Huang Moumou, tested positive for the coronavirus nucleic acid when conducting nucleic acid tests on people in centralized quarantine points. The Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that the test was positive. He had taken the D3205 (04 carriage 07D) train from Shanghai Hongqiao to Jiaocheng at 9:25 on March 28.

3 cases in Fuzhou

On March 31, Taizhou District found a positive COVID-19 nucleic acid test result in the initial screening of close contacts of positive cases from other places, and the Fuzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed it to be positive. Liu, a business traveler from other places, boarded the train from Shaoxing North Station at 11:09 on March 28, took the D3205 train and got off at Fuzhou South Station at 15:57.

On March 31, Gulou District conducted nucleic acid tests on people in centralized quarantine and found two positive cases, which were confirmed positive by Fuzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Da and Su, who came to Fuzhou from other places, took the D3205 train (carriage 04, seats 9C and 7A) from Wenzhou South to Fuzhou on March 28 and arrived at Fuzhou South Station at 15:57.

Xiamen 3 cases

From 0:00 to 18:00 on March 30, Xiamen discovered 1 asymptomatic infection case and 1 positive infection case. They arrived in Xiamen together on March 28 by taking the D3205 train from Shanghai and lived in Neiyan Village, Min'an Street, Xiang'an District.

From 12:00 on March 31 to 12:00 on April 1, Xiamen discovered one confirmed local case of COVID-19. The patient returned to Xiamen from Shanghai on March 28 on the D3205 train. As a person entering Xiamen from Shanghai, he was transferred to a designated hotel for centralized health management and was discovered through nucleic acid screening at a centralized isolation point.

Source: Science Popularization China WeChat Official Account