MIRI – All it takes is four days for the Delta variant to cause serious harm to children, said Miri MP Dr Michael Teo Yu Keng.
Teo, who is also a medical doctor, told The Vibes that laboratory tests revealed that the Delta variant can cause serious damage to the lungs of children within a short period of time.
“It only takes about four days from the time the kids get infected by the Delta variant for their lungs to be damaged, and it can be fatal if not treated immediately.
“Medical evidence now proves beyond doubt that the Delta variant incubation period is much shorter nowadays as compared to when the variant first emerged.
“This Delta mutated strain of the Covid-19 is getting very aggressive at a fast pace.
“This is clearly seen in Sarawak where it has taken over as the dominant variant,” he said.
He also added that the Delta variant can quickly cause the victim to deteriorate from category 1 (without symptoms) and category 2 (mild symptoms) to category 5 (needing ventilator/incubator).
“That is what seems to be happening in Bintulu as disclosed by its MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing yesterday.
“Tiong is right to warn the people not to take this situation lightly,” said Teo, who is also Sarawak PKR vice-chairman.
He stressed that only ivermectin, when administered in the correct dosage by professional doctors, has proven to be effective in tackling Covid-19 and its variants including the Delta variant, but the Health Ministry has yet to approve the drug for human use.
“I sincerely hope the ministry will carry out comprehensive research into ivermectin.
“Sarawak’s State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) too must carry out such research now.
“Sarawak has the most number of Delta variant cases, as well as other variants, so the SDMC has no choice but to embark on such studies,” Teo said.
Two days ago, the SDMC admitted that the Delta variant has been detected in all 12 divisions in Sarawak.
Almost 100% of viruses from Covid-19 patients sampled by a research team from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak tested positive for the Delta variant.
Sarawak’s death tally hits 639 as of yesterday evening, with 620 deaths occurring this year.
The state saw a four-digit increase in new daily infections since the start of this year. – The Vibes, September 15, 2021
