They were the first cases of the British variant, which has no direct connection to travel It was proven in Nordre Follo a little over a week ago.

At the time, the National Institute of Public Health had an ambition to eliminate the most contagious virus variants from Norway.

Saturday evening Halden municipality A message about himself: British virus variant detected in positive samples from a large outbreak in the hockey community.

FHI does not think it is now possible to remove the UK variant from Norway.

We now expect to discover more cases that did not know the route of infection. We no longer think we can eliminate the virus variant, but we are now aiming to slow the spread and new introductions, says the division manager at FHI Line Vold.

She emphasized that not all infections are detected, but that FHI analyzes viruses from outbreaks and samples that laboratories choose from all the positive samples they analyze.

There are four main groups of samples that are analyzed to detect new varieties, according to Fould:

• Monitoring samples
• Samples were analyzed from the outbreaks
• Samples analyzed from import cases
• Samples analyzed for vaccine failure or a special clinical course

It can be hidden spread

It is currently too early to estimate the percentage of positive samples in Norway today that represent the British variant, or the R number of the British variant in Norway.

Since FHI is now prioritizing virus samples from Oslo and Nordre-Volo, the number of confirmed cases with the British variant can give a picture that does not represent the infection status in the entire country.

When do you think the British alternative will be dominant in Norway?

– It really depends on how it behaves in Norway, with the Norwegian system and the level of procedures, and how close we are, but we think it will happen during the spring. Folder says there are many factors that influence it.

In countries where the virus variant has gained a foothold, the virus has been difficult to stop. In both the Netherlands and Denmark, health authorities estimate that an alternative will prevail over the next few weeks.

Since we have dark populations, there can be a hidden spread of infection here as well, says Fuld.

FHI is now working to ensure the quality of new polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which can detect mutated virus variants.

It is important to evaluate which ones are more suitable for use in Norway. Whether only the British, or for example South Africa or Brazil too, had to be proven, the Fuld countries.

Even with increased capacity for sequencing and new PCR tests, TISK remains the most critical strategy in fighting virus mutagenesis, according to Vold.

The outbreak in the Nordre Follo and gatherings in other municipalities underscores the good work being done in the municipalities with testing, infection tracking, quarantine and isolation, she says.