Woman, 90, dies in Belgium after becoming infected with TWO coronavirus variants at the same time - Daily Mail

Woman, 90, dies in Belgium after becoming infected with TWO coronavirus variants at the same time

•  Researchers found the patient was infected with UK and South African variants
•  It is believed to be the first documented case of this seemingly rare occurrence  
•  However scientists are warning that patients can be affected by dual infections 
•  Covid-19 in Belgium is slightly on the rise with 1,027 new infections each day

By Shari Miller For Mailonline

Published: 09:58 BST, 11 July 2021 | Updated: 10:33 BST, 11 July 2021

A 90-year-old woman who died after falling ill with Covid-19 was infected with both the UK and South African variants at the same time, scientists in Belgium have revealed. 

The woman, who lived alone and received at-home nursing care, had not received the vaccine and was admitted to the OLV Hospital in the Belgian city of Aalst - around 17 miles from Brussels - after a spate of falls in March. She tested positive for Covid-19 the same day.

While her oxygen levels were initially good, her condition deteriorated rapidly and she died five days later. 

A 90-year-old woman admitted to OLV Hospital in the Belgian city of Aalst was found to have been positive for both the alpha (UK) and beta (South African) strains of Covid-19

When medical staff tested for the presence of any variants of concern they found that she was carrying both the Alpha strain, which originated in Britain, and the Beta variant first detected in South Africa.

Researchers believe it is the first documented case of its kind and are warning, although rare, dual infections can occur.

Covid-19 infections are currently on the rise in Belgium, with 1,027 new infections reported on average each day, although the death rate is waning, with latest figures showing just two reported deaths in the last few days.

WHAT ARE THE UK AND SOUTH AFRICAN VARIANTS? 

UK (also known as Kent) variant

Real name: B.1.1.7 or Alpha strain

When was it discovered? The variant was first found in the South East of England and can be traced back to September 2020.

What mutations does it have? It has 23 mutations, some of which change the shape of the spike protein on its outside. The main mutation is known as N501Y. This appears to make it better able to stick to the cells inside the body and makes it more likely to cause infection and faster to spread.

How many have been infected? UK studies have shown it is between 50 and 70 per cent more infectious than the regular strain. More than 200,000 cases in Britain have been identified and it has spread to more than 50 countries. 

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South African variant 

Real name: B.1.351

When was it discovered? Nelson Mandela Bay, in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, in mid-December.

What mutations does it have? The South African variant carries 21 mutations, including E484K and N501Y.

Why is it causing worry? Those two mutations suggest it is more infectious than the older version of Covid. However, it has not taken a hold in the UK in the same way as other variants, with the Delta strain now most dominant.

There have been 1,093,700 infections and 25,198 coronavirus-related deaths reported in the country since the pandemic began.

Around 51.5 per cent of the population are thought to have been vaccinated so far.  

Molecular biologist Anne Vankeerberghen from the OLV Hospital who led the research, said: 'Both these variants were circulating in Belgium at the time, so it is likely that the lady was co-infected with different viruses from two different people,' said 'Unfortunately, we don't know how she became infected.'

Vankeerberghen said it was difficult to say whether the co-infection played a role in the fast deterioration of the patient.

The research, which has not yet been submitted to a medical journal for publication, is being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases.

While Vankeerberghen said there had been 'no other published cases' of similar co-infections, the 'phenomenon is probably underestimated', she added via a press release.

This is because of limited testing for variants of concern, she said, calling for an increase in the use of fast PCR testing to detect known variant mutations.

In January, scientists in Brazil reported that two people had been simultaneously infected with two different strains of the coronavirus, but the study has yet to be published in a scientific journal.

In comments reacting to the research, Lawrence Young, a virologist and professor of molecular oncology at the University of Warwick, said it was not a surprise to find an individual infected with more than one strain.

'This study does highlight the need for more studies to determine whether infection with multiple variants of concern affects the clinical course of Covid-19 and whether this in any way compromises the efficacy of vaccination,' he added.

New versions or variants of Covid-19 are constantly appearing due to mutations in the virus as it spreads. 

Some of these variations give the virus new advantages, such as becoming more contagious or being able to dodge existing antibodies from a past infection or vaccination. 

The strains capable of doing this are being monitored by scientists and are called 'variants of concern.'  

Researchers have highlighted the case of a 90-year-old woman in Aalst, Belgium, who died after contracting two strains of Covid-19 at the same time

In the UK, the Alpha and Beta strains now only account for a few cases. The latest data from Public Health England shows a rise of 680 cases of Alpha and nine of Beta in the week leading up to 7 July.

This is compared to the Delta variant, which has become the most dominant strain in the UK with 54,268 new cases in the last seven days. 

Covid-19 in Belgium is slightly on the rise with an average 1,027 new infections each day

Despite the increasing number of new cases, the death rate continues to fall in Belgium

The Belgian case follows on from two cases of double Covid infection reported in Brazil in February.   

Researchers at Feevale University made the discovery after swabbing 90 infected people in Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. 

One of the patients tested positive for two Brazilian strains which evolved separately in different states, known as P.1 and P.2.  

No research has yet been published in a scientific journal or scrutinised by other scientists however.

In February, Dr John McCauley, director of the Worldwide Influenza Centre at the Francis Crick Institute in London, told MailOnline it was possible for someone to get infected by two strains at the same time, which can happen with the flu. 

He warned that, while unlikely, it was also biologically possible the two strains could interfere with one another and swap genetic code. 

'Getting one strain up a nostril and another up another nostril doesn't matter...but (the risk is) if they get to the back of the throat and then go into the same cell - then there's an opportunity for this to happen.'

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2021-07-11 08:58:20Z
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