The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon
<i>Background</i>: An outbreak of an unknown respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, emerged in the city of Wuhan in Hubei Province, China, in December 2019 and was referred to as coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Soon after, it was declared as a global pandemic...
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MDPI AG
2021-06-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3271/9/2/40 |
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| author | Fatima Y. Noureddine Mohamed Chakkour Ali El Roz Jana Reda Reem Al Sahily Ali Assi Mohamed Joma Hassan Salami Sadek J. Hashem Batoul Harb Ali Salami Ghassan Ghssein |
| author_facet | Fatima Y. Noureddine Mohamed Chakkour Ali El Roz Jana Reda Reem Al Sahily Ali Assi Mohamed Joma Hassan Salami Sadek J. Hashem Batoul Harb Ali Salami Ghassan Ghssein |
| author_sort | Fatima Y. Noureddine |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Background</i>: An outbreak of an unknown respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, emerged in the city of Wuhan in Hubei Province, China, in December 2019 and was referred to as coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Soon after, it was declared as a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020. SARS-CoV-2 mainly infects the respiratory tract with different outcomes ranging from asymptomatic infection to severe critical illness leading to death. Different SARS-CoV-2 variants are emerging of which three have raised concerns worldwide due to their high transmissibility among populations. <i>Objective</i>: To study the prevalence of COVID-19 in the region of Nabatieh-South Lebanon during the past year and assess the presence of SARS-CoV-2 variants and their effect on the spread of infection during times of lockdown. <i>Methods</i>: In our study, 37,474 nasopharyngeal swab samples were collected and analyzed for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus in suspected patients attending a tertiary health care center in South Lebanon during the period between 16 March 2020 and 21 February 2021. <i>Results</i>: The results demonstrated a variation in the prevalence rates ranging from less than 1% during full lockdown of the country to 8.4% upon easing lockdown restrictions and reaching 27.5% after the holidays and 2021 New Year celebrations. Interestingly, a new variant(s) appeared starting January 2021 with a significant positive association between the prevalence of positive tests and the percentage of the variant(s). <i>Conclusions</i>: Our results indicate that the lockdown implemented by the Lebanese officials was an effective intervention to contain COVID-19 spread. Our study also showed that lifting lockdown measures during the holidays, which allowed indoor crowded gatherings to occur, caused a surge in COVID-19 cases and rise in the mortality rates nationwide. More importantly, we confirmed the presence of a highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variant(s) circulating in the Lebanese community from at least January 2021 onwards. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:45:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2ae84bec4d67444d8795f52228d3a1cb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3271 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:45:38Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Medical Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-2ae84bec4d67444d8795f52228d3a1cb2023-11-21T22:35:10ZengMDPI AGMedical Sciences2076-32712021-06-01924010.3390/medsci9020040The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, LebanonFatima Y. Noureddine0Mohamed Chakkour1Ali El Roz2Jana Reda3Reem Al Sahily4Ali Assi5Mohamed Joma6Hassan Salami7Sadek J. Hashem8Batoul Harb9Ali Salami10Ghassan Ghssein11Medical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonDepartment of Biology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut P.O. Box 11-0236, LebanonDepartment of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Lebanese University, Nabatieh P.O. Box 6573/14, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonMedical administration, SRHUH, Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, LebanonDepartment of Mathematics, Faculty of Sciences, Lebanese University, Nabatieh P.O. Box 6573/14, LebanonMedical Analysis Laboratory, Molecular Genetics Unit, Sheikh Ragheb Harb University Hospital (SRHUH), Nabatieh P.O. Box 1700, Lebanon<i>Background</i>: An outbreak of an unknown respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, emerged in the city of Wuhan in Hubei Province, China, in December 2019 and was referred to as coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Soon after, it was declared as a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020. SARS-CoV-2 mainly infects the respiratory tract with different outcomes ranging from asymptomatic infection to severe critical illness leading to death. Different SARS-CoV-2 variants are emerging of which three have raised concerns worldwide due to their high transmissibility among populations. <i>Objective</i>: To study the prevalence of COVID-19 in the region of Nabatieh-South Lebanon during the past year and assess the presence of SARS-CoV-2 variants and their effect on the spread of infection during times of lockdown. <i>Methods</i>: In our study, 37,474 nasopharyngeal swab samples were collected and analyzed for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus in suspected patients attending a tertiary health care center in South Lebanon during the period between 16 March 2020 and 21 February 2021. <i>Results</i>: The results demonstrated a variation in the prevalence rates ranging from less than 1% during full lockdown of the country to 8.4% upon easing lockdown restrictions and reaching 27.5% after the holidays and 2021 New Year celebrations. Interestingly, a new variant(s) appeared starting January 2021 with a significant positive association between the prevalence of positive tests and the percentage of the variant(s). <i>Conclusions</i>: Our results indicate that the lockdown implemented by the Lebanese officials was an effective intervention to contain COVID-19 spread. Our study also showed that lifting lockdown measures during the holidays, which allowed indoor crowded gatherings to occur, caused a surge in COVID-19 cases and rise in the mortality rates nationwide. More importantly, we confirmed the presence of a highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variant(s) circulating in the Lebanese community from at least January 2021 onwards.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3271/9/2/40COVID-19SARS-CoV-2variantlockdownLebanon |
| spellingShingle | Fatima Y. Noureddine Mohamed Chakkour Ali El Roz Jana Reda Reem Al Sahily Ali Assi Mohamed Joma Hassan Salami Sadek J. Hashem Batoul Harb Ali Salami Ghassan Ghssein The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon Medical Sciences COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 variant lockdown Lebanon |
| title | The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon |
| title_full | The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon |
| title_fullStr | The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon |
| title_short | The Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variant(s) and Its Impact on the Prevalence of COVID-19 Cases in the Nabatieh Region, Lebanon |
| title_sort | emergence of sars cov 2 variant s and its impact on the prevalence of covid 19 cases in the nabatieh region lebanon |
| topic | COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 variant lockdown Lebanon |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3271/9/2/40 |
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