Delta variant: the Ministry of Health has issued a circular with the procedures to be followed in the event of possible community traffic

This Saturday, the Ministry of Health published a circular with the procedures to be followed in the event of possible community circulation of delta variant of coronavirus.

The Minister of Health, Carla Vizzotti, confirmed that in Argentina there is “around 100 confirmed cases of the Delta variant who are travelers and cohabitants ”. But he assured that “thanks to the restrictive measures” on the incomes of the people in the country established by the government, it was possible to stop its spread, and asked the population to “maintain” the care while the vaccination campaign progresses.

“Upon notification of confirmed cases of COVID-19 of the Delta variant no epidemiological link known to international travelers, the increasing number of imported cases among travelers and the detection of import-related cases in different jurisdictions ”-recalls the circular in its introduction– “The Epidemiology Department of The Nation’s Ministry of Health has the following measures for the surveillance and control of suspected, probable and confirmed cases of the Delta variant and in close contact with confirmed or probable cases. They will have an extraordinary and transitory character ”.

1. Classification of cases:

Suspect case of the Delta variant: all confirmed cases of COVID-19 in international travelers without variant identification.

Probable case of the Delta variant: any COVID-19 positive case with a positive rt-PCR screening result for the Delta variant

Confirmed case of the Delta variant: all cases with identification of the Delta variant by partial or complete genomic sequencing; any probable case and epidemiological link with a confirmed case of the Delta variant.

Related case Delta variant: any confirmed case of COVID-19 without variant identification and close contact with a confirmed case of the Delta variant or part of a chain of transmission of the Delta variant; any symptomatic case and close contact with a confirmed case of the Delta variant or forming part of a chain of transmission of the Delta variant and which could not be studied in the laboratory (case with clinical epidemiological confirmation criteria). In all cases, an attempt should be made to take a sample and study it in the laboratory.

Rejected cases Delta variant: suspected or probable cases in which the delta variant has been ruled out by the identification of another variant.

2. Confirmed and probable cases linked to the Delta variant: isolation and follow-up

All probable, confirmed or related cases of the Delta variant should be recorded isolation for 10 days from the onset of symptoms (for symptomatic cases) or from the day of diagnosis (for asymptomatic cases.

All cases must have a clinical follow-up with a frequency of at least three days.

Cases will be studied on the 10th day by RT-PCR -with the patient’s consent-, for the purpose of generating evidence and not for clinical management or discharge.

Objectives: compare with the original results (positivity and Ct) and attempt viral isolation, in order to generate local evidence on the potential for transmissibility.

The samples will be sent to the National Reference Laboratory for study by PCR and attempted virus isolation.

3. Close contacts: Quarantine and PCR test for discharge:

All the close contacts (cohabiting or not cohabiting) probable or confirmed cases of delta variant must perform quarantine for 14 days from the last contact with the case – regardless of their vaccination status (whether or not they have been vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2) and have had a previous COVID-19 episode.

All close contacts should be tested for PCR from the 7th day since the last contact with the case with a negative result as a condition of discharge (it must be duly notified in the SNVS)

4. Registration and notification:

All cases and contacts that meet the definitions of probable, confirmed, or associated with the Delta variant should be recorded as follows:

-Travelers and traveler contacts, in SARS COV-2 event at points of entry and import-related cases, by recording the contact history with an international traveler in the epidemiology tab; and where applicable, genomic surveillance also identifying the condition of the international traveler or contact with an international traveler or import-related cases.

-In non-travelers, as a suspected case of COVID-19, Influenza and OVRy in the Genomic Surveillance event, by identifying in the Epidemiology tab the condition for which the study was carried out for genomic identification or genomic screening (contact with the Delta variant case, regular surveillance, increase in cases, etc.); in the Laboratory tab, the result corresponding to the identification of the Delta variant and the Classification in the Event tab

5. Epidemiological investigation:

All positive cases among international travelers and their close contacts will have to to be educated and monitored by the jurisdiction of habitual residence.

All jurisdictions must transmit to the Department of Epidemiology of the National Ministry of Health the results of epidemiological investigations carried out on all probable or confirmed cases of the Delta variant and their close contacts, within 24 hours of onset and with the information available. until there. If the investigation is not completed, the final report will be sent at a later date, within 24 hours of its completion.