Virologist Koopmans: “Delta type is also increasing in the Rotterdam region”

The delta type of coronavirus is more common in the Rotterdam region than in other parts of the country. This is what virologist Marion Koopmans of Erasmus MC in Rotterdam said on Regenmond Radio on Tuesday morning. “We expect that to continue, so it is important that the basic measures remain in place,” he added.

Koopmans describes the relaxation, which will take effect next weekend, as exciting. “It’s going well and we’re seeing it, but that’s mainly because so many people are being vaccinated. And we’re seeing numbers fall on all fronts and that means space. But that space can also be wasted. We won’t notice it in the summer., but in the period when It precedes that. It is important that we continue to be aware of that.”

According to Koopmans, the delta variant, which is currently a significant burden in the UK, has almost supplanted earlier variants of the coronavirus. Previously reported relaxation processes were reversed to control the virus. “You see there this alternative is more contagious, but you see it in more places. We also expect that in the Netherlands, just as we saw at Christmas last year when the British alternative was available. You can see how difficult it is… to keep something like that out the door. .”

According to the virologist, about three percent of cases in the Netherlands are related to the delta type of coronavirus. “You can see it’s increasing. In some samples in different regions, you can actually see it’s more, and also in the Rotterdam area. We expect that to continue and we have to monitor that closely.”

vaccination

Studies show that the Pfizer vaccine offers good protection against the delta variant, but that’s only after two injections. It is not known what the status of other vaccines is. “In England they are not given Janssen (where you only need one injection, editor). You would expect the protection of this vaccine to be comparable, but whether this is also the case is closely monitored. If necessary, it could have been done. Checking if an additional dose is needed, but it doesn’t look like that at the moment.”