MANILA – The Department of Health (DOH) agrees with the study of US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC) that the Delta coronavirus variant is as contagious as chicken pox.
DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in an online media briefing that the US CDC conducted a study on common transmissible diseases with similar attributes to the Delta variant (B1617.2).
In one graph, the researchers included bird flu, Ebola, SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), seasonal flu, polio, measles, and chicken pox.
“Yung graph po nakapagpakita na ‘yung mga sakit na talagang mabilis kumalat (The graph showed the diseases which spread easily) and they are now comparing the Delta variant spread or transmissibility with the chicken pox transmissibility,” she said.
Based on the graph, chicken pox can infect up to eight people in just one sitting.
“So, with this kind of analysis, yes, we agree to that and nasa ebidensiya naman po talaga na ang (there is evidence that) Delta variant po is highly transmissible compared to the UK variant which infects only four to five persons. But the Delta variant can infect up to eight persons with the interaction of just one person,” Vergeire said.
According to the World Health Organization, the Delta variant is the fastest and fittest coronavirus strain yet discovered, “picking off” the most vulnerable individuals, particularly in places with poor vaccination rates.
Vaccinated individuals are less likely to have serious breakthrough infections, but they can spread the virus just as easily as unvaccinated people, the CDC stated.
“Though the vaccines are still 90 percent effective in preventing severe illness against the Delta variant, they are likely less effective in preventing infection or transmission,” the study indicated.
The Delta variant was first discovered in India and has now spread to 85 nations.
As of now, 119 Delta variant cases have been confirmed in the Philippines.
