According to the UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA), in a statement released today, the scientists’ findings add that Omicron produces milder diseases than other strains, but also spreads faster and prevents vaccinations better.
The agency adds that, based on cases reported in the UK, it is estimated that someone with Omicron is 31% to 45% less likely to go to a hospital emergency room, compared to a case with Delta’ and 50 to 70% less. He is likely to be hospitalized.”
The agency cautions, however, that the analysis is “preliminary and highly uncertain” due to the small number of Omicron patients in UK hospitals and the fact that most are in the younger age groups.
According to the same note, as of December 20, 132 people were admitted to hospitals in the UK with the confirmed Omicron variant, of whom 14 had died, aged between 52 and 96.
Scientists warn that any reductions in risk must be weighed against the fact that Omicron spreads much faster than Delta and is better able to evade vaccines.
The agency’s research reveals that the protection offered by the booster vaccine against symptomatic Omicron infection appears to wane after about 10 weeks, although protection from hospitalization and serious illness is likely to last longer.
UKHSA chief executive Jenny Harris said the analysis “shows an encouraging early sign that people who contract the Omicron variant may have a relatively lower risk of hospitalization than those with other variants.”
However, he adds that “the number of cases is currently very high in the UK, and even a relatively low proportion requiring hospitalization can result in a large number of seriously ill people”.
Meanwhile, British Health Minister Sajid Javid said the information emerging from Omicron was “encouraging news”, but admitted that it “remains unclear (…) how much this risk is reduced” compared to the delta variant.
The analysis follows two studies, one by Imperial College London and the other by Scottish researchers, and found that patients with Omicron were between 20% and 68% less likely to need hospital treatment than patients who would have the delta variant. .
Data from South Africa, where the Omicron variant was recently first discovered, suggests that this variant may be milder in this country.
The British agency adds that even if these first studies are confirmed, the new alternative could overburden health systems due to the high number of infections it causes.
The health agency adds that Omicron appears to be able to reinfect people more easily than previous variants, with 9.5% of Omicron cases found in people who have already contracted Covid-19, a number it acknowledges is likely an underestimate.
Countries around the world are closely following the situation in Great Britain, where the Omicron variant now prevails and where cases have increased by more than 50% in a week.
Britain recorded today 119,789 laboratory-confirmed cases, the highest number during the epidemic, and on the second day the number exceeded 100,000 new cases.
