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COVID-19: India's variant fuels hospitalizations and deaths
CGTN
01:41

A COVID-19 variant first identified in India has now been found in 49 other countries, according to the World Health Organization.

The variant, called B.1.617 was upgraded to a "variant of concern" by the WHO.

This strain has shown to spread faster and could be more resistant to some COVID-19 treatments and antibodies.

With more than 23 million confirmed COVID-19 cases in India, health experts blame the variant for the country's alarming surge in new cases.

The rise in COVID-19 infections has also brought more cases of a serious fungal infection.

Known as "black fungus," it's a life-threatening infection that starts in the sinuses and can spread to the brain.

Symptoms like facial swelling, congestion and black lesions can show up weeks after a COVID-19 inflection.

According to the WHO, India has about 50 percent of all the new coronavirus cases in the world over the last week.

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