Doctors treating Covid-19 patients in India have warned of new symptoms associated with the Indian variant which is causing concern in the UK.

Also known as Delta variant, the mutation has become the UK’s dominant Covid-19 variant and conclusive data on the effectiveness of vaccines against the variant will be available in the next couple of weeks according to Matt Hancock.

He told MPs officials are working on developing the “absolutely critical” figure showing the efficacy of jabs at reducing serious diseases and hospital admissions for the Delta variant first identified in India.

New symptoms identified by doctors in India include gangrene and hearing loss.

The mutation is believed to be the most infectious variant to emerge from the pandemic so far and medics believe have identified three new symptoms in India.

Salisbury Journal: The mutation is believed to be the most infectious variant to emerge from the pandemic. (PA)The mutation is believed to be the most infectious variant to emerge from the pandemic. (PA)

Medical experts believe diarrhoea, hearing impairment and blood clots that can lead to gangrene have been linked to cases of infection from the Delta variant.

Dr Abdul Ghafer, an infectious disease physician at Chennai's Apollo Hospital, has told Bloomberg how the virus has become more “unpredictable”.

He said: “Last year, we thought we had learned about our new enemy, but it changed.

“This virus has become so, so unpredictable.”

Dr Ghafur also revealed how he is seeing more patients with symptoms of diarrhoea in comparison to the first wave of the pandemic.

Dr Manudhane, a cardiologist in Mumbai has said he is now seeing at least one patient a week compared to three or four in the whole of last year.

The warning comes one week after the first cases of deadly black fungus linked to the Delta variant of Covid-19 were reportedly seen outside of India.

Health officials in Chile and Uruguay have discovered patients presenting the deadly black fungus.

Black fungus, which is better known as mucormycosis is a serious but rare fungal infection caused by a group of molds called mucormycetes.

The Chilean Society of Infectology said: "Cases of fungal infections have been detected since the start of the pandemic but the frequency has increased and serious cases have risen."

The Delta variant is thought to be 40% more transmissible than the Alpha variant first seen in Kent which swept across the UK over the winter peak.

Salisbury Journal: Matt Hancock says the vaccine is breaking the link between infection and hospital admissions. (PA)Matt Hancock says the vaccine is breaking the link between infection and hospital admissions. (PA)

But Mr Hancock has previously said the vaccine was breaking the previously “rock solid” link between infections and hospital admissions.

Conservative former minister Steve Baker, the deputy to Mr Harper in the Covid Recovery Group, said in a statement: “It’s great to hear from the Health Secretary that vaccines continue to break the link between infections and hospitalisations and deaths.

“The Health Secretary confirmed that available evidence demonstrates that two doses give 90-95% protection against hospitalisation and 95-99% protection against death.

“The vaccines are working and the NHS has done a fantastic job.”

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