Doctor weighs in on COVID-19 Lambda variant, says no reason for concern
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The delta strain of the coronavirus has been dominating headlines, making it easy to forget there are other strains that continue to circulate. But there’s another strain, doctors say, people should pay attention to.
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It’s called the Lambda variant. Here’s what they know so far about it: It used to be called the India variant because it originally came from Peru. And it’s just another one of the mutations floating around looking for a host to latch on to.
According to Dr. Christohper Doehring, vice president of medical affairs at Franciscan Health, because of the rise in breakthrough cases the variant is looking for hosts in the form of unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals to latch on to. This could potentially strengthen the strain. However, there is some good news when it comes to the Lambda variant.
“This variant may prove to be more likely to break through vaccinations in some parts of the world than others,” Doehring says. “At this point we don’t see it being a major concern in the United States. But at this point that is yet to be seen.”
He’s referring to the CDC’s position on the Lambda variant, considering what’s known so far about its contagiousness and severity. While the World Health Organization considers it a “variant of interest,” the CDC does not classify it the same way, saying there is no reason to panic over the mutation.
Nonetheless, Doehring adds, we are going to be seeing different variants of the virus over time. However, it’s not unlike the flu. Different strains come out every year. sometimes the vaccines target a specific strain, but the virus mutates slightly. Still, the vaccine offers protection.