The Delta variant of Covid-19 has become the dominant strain of Covid-19 in Thailand and has been found in 76 out of 77 provinces, taking over from the Alpha variant, the Department of Medical Sciences (DMS) said yesterday.
The Delta variant, first detected in India, is now one of the world's top concerns due to its 40% higher rate of infection compared to the Alpha variant first found in the United Kingdom.
DMS director-general Dr Supakit Sirilak yesterday said that the Delta variant remains the dominant variant in Bangkok, found in 92% of cases, while 4.6% of the cases are Alpha.
The Delta variant is also recorded in other provinces as making up 83% of cases, while 16% are the Alpha variant.
The Delta variant has yet to be found in Suphan Buri.
Apart from the Delta variant, Dr Supakit said officials were able to successfully contain the Beta variant, first identified in South Africa, in the southern provinces, Bung Kan province and Bangkok.
Most infections with Beta were detected in the southern province of Narathiwat as most of the infected people had carried the virus across from Malaysia. Fortunately, the Beta variant spreads slower and is easier to curb, he said.
So far, there is still no sign of the Lambda variant from South America, Dr Supakit said.
Dr Supakit also addressed people sharing their immune status after vaccination on social media, saying that it was not a sure way to indicate a vaccine's efficacy in dealing with the Delta or Beta variants.
He went on to say that it was just the overall immune status and that each laboratory test recorded different results. Furthermore, the World Health Organization (WHO) has not determined the appropriate level of immunity to efficiently prevent the virus yet.