The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Wednesday that Omicron is “still at a very high risk” globally, warning of the rapid spread of the new version of Covid-19 as the holidays approach. end of year
According to the United Nations World Health Agency, the Omicron variant has spread to 106 countries.
“Hospitalisation continues to increase in the UK and South Africa. The health system could be overwhelmed. As a result, the overall risk associated with the new version of the omicron problem is very high,” the WHO said in its latest epidemiological bulletin.
“Since the last update published on December 14, new countries in all six WHO regions have confirmed cases of the omicron variant,” notes the WHO, noting that there were more than 4.1 million new cases during the week and just 45,000. There were fewer new deaths. December 13-19.
In general, Omicron spreads faster than the delta version and causes infection in people who have already been vaccinated or who have recovered from the Covid-19 disease, specifies the organization.
“Recent data indicate that the Omicron variant has a growth advantage over the delta version and is spreading rapidly,” the organization said, adding that “countries with high levels of Omicron are also reporting rapid spread. High level of population immunity”
As to the clinical severity of Omicron, data is still limited, WHO said.
The WHO argued, “It is still unclear to what extent the observed rapid growth rates can be attributed to immune evasion, increased intrinsic transmissibility, or a combination of both.”
While the majority of omicron cases identified in November 2021 were travel-linked, the UN agency said, community transmission with affiliated groups has now been reported in several countries. Between 20 October and 19 December, the Omicron variant was detected in 1.6% of the samples sequenced.
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