VARIANTS OF COVID-19: WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW

The article describes the variants of COVID-19 and their classiﬁ cation, which is very important for better understanding and prevention of COVID-19 pandemic. Some variants spread more easily and quickly than other variants, which may lead to more cases of COVID-19. An increase in the number of cases will put more strain on healthcare resources, lead to more hospitalizations, and potentially more deaths. These classiﬁ cations are based on how easily the variant spreads, how severe the symptoms are, how the variant responds to treatments, and how well vaccines protect against the variant.


Variant of Interest (VOI)
A variant with specific genetic markers that have been associated with changes to receptor binding, reduced neutralization by antibodies generated against previous infection or vaccination, reduced effi cacy of treatments, potential diagnostic impact, or predicted increase in transmissibility or disease severity [5].
Possible attributes of a Variant of Interest: • Specific genetic markers that are predicted to affect transmission, diagnostics, therapeutics, or immune escape.
• Evidence that it is the cause of an increased proportion of cases or unique outbreak clusters.
• Limited prevalence or expansion in the US or in other countries.
A Variant of Interest might require one or more appropriate public health actions, including enhanced sequence surveillance, enhanced laboratory characterization, or epidemiological investigations to assess how easily the virus spreads to others, the severity of disease, the efficacy of therapeutics and whether current ly approved or authorized vaccines offer protection.
Currently, no SARS-CoV-2 variants are designated as VOI.

Variant of Concern (VOC)
A variant for which there is evidence of an increase in transmissibility, more severe disease (for example, increased hospitalizations or deaths), significant reduction in neutralization by antibodies generated during previous infection or vaccination, reduced effectiveness of treatments or vaccines, or diagnostic detection failures [6].
Possible attributes of a variant of concern: In addition to Current variants of concern in the United States that are being closely monitored and characterized are listed below. This table will be updated when a new variant of concern is identified. Treatments: Nearly all variants circulating in the United States respond to treatment with FDAauthorized monoclonal antibody treatments [7].

Variants of Concern
Conclusions. There are many variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 . Some are believed, or have been stated, to be of particular importance due to their potential for increased transmissibility, increased virulence, or reduced effectiveness of vaccines against them. These variants contribute to the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Spread of COVID-19
Get a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as you can. Find a vaccine.
Wear a mask that covers your nose and mouth to help protect yourself and others. Stay 6 feet apart from others who don't live with you.
Avoid crowds and poorly ventilated indoor spaces.
Test to prevent spread to others.
Wash your hands often with soap and water. Use hand sanitizer if soap and water aren't available.