Should you be concerned with the lambda or delta variants?

The lambda variant of the coronavirus is back in the news after a Houston hospital said it has found its first case of the lambda variant.

Now, experts are looking to see if the lambda variant will lead to widespread cases as the delta variant continues to spread.

What is the lambda variant?

• The COVID-19 lambda variant was first detected in Peru back in summer 2020, Fox News reports.
• The World Health Organization said the lambda variant is a “variant of interest.”
• The WHO said the lambda variant can be resistant to antibodies created by vaccines, too, as I wrote for the Deseret News.

Delta vs. lambda — which should you worry about?

It’s a fair question. Which of the new COVID-19 variants do you need to be concerned about right now?

S. Wesley Long, medical director of diagnostic microbiology at Houston Methodist Hospital, told The Washington Post that the delta variant is still more concerning for now compared to the lambda variant.

• “It is not anywhere near as concerning as the delta variant,” Long told The Washington Post. “That’s the engine that’s going to be driving the surge in the U.S.”

However, scientists are still looking into the lambda variant, which has been known to spread quickly like other variants, according to The Washington Post.

• In early July, Dr. Jairo Mendez-Rico, a World Health Organization virologist, told German news outlet Deutsche Welle that there is not enough data about the lambda variant to be worried right now.
• “So far we have seen no indication that the lambda variant is more aggressive,” Mendez-Rico told the Deutsche Welle. ”It is possible that it may exhibit higher infection rates, but we don’t yet have enough reliable data to compare it to gamma or delta.”