Thread by @cnnphilippines

THREAD: Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines holds a webinar on the new COVID-19 variants | LIVE bit.ly/3smG3oX

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Philippine Medical Association President Benito Atienza notes that a year into the pandemic, some hospitals in Metro Manila — the coronavirus epicenter — have hit full capacity to cater to COVID-19 patients

Dr. Nina Gloriani, head of the DOST's vaccine development expert panel explains that a mutation is any change in the DNA or RNA sequence

Viruses are made up of a core of genetic material — either DNA or RNA — covered in a coat of proteins. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, uses RNA and its surface is called the spike protein

Dr. Gloriani says viruses naturally mutate, especially RNA viruses

Some SARS-CoV-2 variants carry mutations that either appear to evade antibodies or make the virus easier to spread than previously known variants

Dr. Gloriani shows the performance of frontrunners in the COVID-19 vaccine race against variants of concern

Dr. Gloriani says B.1.1.7 variant first detected in the UK is easily more transmitted because it has the N501Y mutation

Dr. Gloriani says the B.1.351 variant first found in South Africa has N501Y as well as E484K and K417N mutations which may escape antibodies

Dr. Gloriani says P.1 variant first detected in Brazil has the N501Y and E484K mutations

In total, the country recorded 223 cases of the variant from the UK, 152 with the variant from South Africa, and one case of the variant from Brazil

cnnphilippines.com/news/2021/3/20…

The country also recorded 104 variant cases first reported in the Philippines called P.3. The World Health Organization has yet to declare if P.3 is a variant of concern like B.1.1.7, B.1.351 and P.1

Dr. Gloriani, citing the US CDC, says travel increases people’s chance of spreading and getting coronavirus.

She recommends postponing travel especially to places experiencing major outbreaks of COVID-19 like Metro Manila where variants of concern have been detected.

Dr. Gloriani on what to do if travel cannot be avoided

Dr. Gloriani cites US FDA study that found that double masking — wearing a mask on top of another — can reduce the risk of infection by 95% compared to a simple mask

Dr. Gloriani says she herself does the double masking

Dr. Gloriani shares three ways to boost one's immune system to lower the risk of catching COVID-19

Dr. Gloriani: Please take extra precautions if you must go out this Holy Week season

Dr. Gloriani: The sooner we vaccinate 70 to 80 percent of our population to achieve herd immunity, the better.

Dr. Gloriani says vaccines that appear less effective against variants of concern are better than zero protection.

Dr. Gloriani says the COVID-19 vaccines that the Philippines currently has cannot cause coronavirus infection.

But she says if the person is carrying the coronavirus at the time of inoculation, the vaccine will have no effect, but notes more evidence is needed to make this conclusion.

Philippine Medical Association: As of now, delayed ang rollout sa ibang provinces, dapat nasa rural health centers na ang mga bakuna, pero iyong iba nasa hospitals palang.

Dr. Lulu Bravo, Philippine Foundation for Vaccination Founder and Executive Director, and Dr. Nina Gloriani say those who received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines will still need a booster shot to protect them against the variants of concerns.

Dr. Gloriani says they are requiring India-based vaccine maker Bharat Biotech to submit data on the effect of their coronavirus shot against the variants of concern.

Bharat Biotech has a pending application for emergency use of its coronavirus shot in the Philippines. bit.ly/3tVEMWe