By SudOuest.fr with AFP
WHO expects the number of people admitted to hospital wards to soar, even though the disease, with the Omicron variant, was “slightly less severe”
The rapid spread of the Omicron variant will cause “a large number of hospitalizations” of Covid-19 patients, the European branch of the World Health Organization warned on Tuesday. “A rapid rise in Omicron, like the one we are seeing in several countries, even if combined with a slightly less severe illness, will still lead to a large number of hospitalizations, especially among the unvaccinated,” said Catherine Smallwood, one of the main officials of WHO Europe.
Faced with uncertainties over the new variant, countries are hesitating between strong restrictions and a more flexible strategy due to signs of less seriousness from Omicron. “It is too early to say whether the Omicron wave will be more or less severe than that of Delta”, underlined Catherine Smallwood, “even if the preliminary data in the populations affected first in Europe (England, Scotland, Denmark) show that Omicron may have a lower risk of hospitalization compared to Delta ”.
Still questions
The emergency response specialist called for taking these preliminary data “with caution” because for the time being the cases observed mainly concern “young and healthy populations in countries with high vaccination rates”. “We have not yet seen the impact that Omicron will have on the most vulnerable groups: the elderly who have not yet received a full vaccination,” says the expert.
Much more contagious, undoubtedly less virulent: a month after its identification in South Africa, scientists are starting to better understand the Omicron variant, without being able to say how much it will change the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. Early studies from South Africa, Scotland and England last week show that Omicron appears to cause fewer hospitalizations than Delta. Based on these data, Omicron could be between 35% and 80% less severe than Delta.