The Health Minister underlined today, 23 June, the importance of being cautious in the face of the dissemination of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus variant called 'Delta Plus', a mutation of the strain initially identified in India and which is already found in Portugal.
“We have been sharing the results of both estimates and the sequencing with all honesty and transparency. The most up-to-date information was shared on Saturday by the National Health Institute Dr. Ricardo Jorge [INSA] and concerns the Delta variant. Virus mutations are to be expected and, of course, we must act with prudence and observation», stressed the minister in statements on the sidelines of the presentation of the Spring 2021 Report, by the Portuguese Health Systems Observatory (OPSS).
Marta Temido said that it is necessary to "continue to closely follow the evolution of these virus mutations and their presence in Portugal."
Faced with the possible spread of the 'Delta Plus' variant, Marta Temido reiterated that the fight against the pandemic represents a “continuous effort” and stated that only with the commitment of all countries is it possible to reach a successful outcome.
"As long as we have not managed to overcome this pandemic in a total way, we will be exposed to mutations and new variants", he said.
“We must always maintain the same prudence in maintaining non-pharmacological measures of individual protection, because this is the best way to protect ourselves in this context of extraordinary uncertainty. It is not worth saying that we know everything or we promise what we cannot promise”, he noted, continuing: “we have to be alert and maintain the measures: vaccination and testing are the two great weapons”.
According to information provided by INSA to the Renaissance, 24 cases of infection by the 'Delta Plus' variant, which was previously referred to as the Nepal variant, have already been detected in Portugal.
The INSA also added that this mutation represents only 2,5% of the total cases of infection by the Delta variant, which is already dominant in the Lisbon and Vale do Tejo region, where it constitutes about 70% of the total cases of infection detected.
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