Omicron: the risk of hospitalization reduced by up to 70% compared to the Delta variant

Patients infected with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus have up to a 70% lower risk of being hospitalized compared to the Delta variant, according to an analysis by the British health security agency published on Thursday. According to the British agency (UKHSA), which is very cautious, especially because of the low number of patients hospitalized with Omicron, people infected with Omicron are between 50 and 70% less likely to be hospitalized.

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This analysis, which is in line with two British studies published on Wednesday, is however “Highly uncertain due to the low number of patients with Omicron currently in hospital, the inability to effectively measure all previous infections and the limited spread of Omicron among the older age groups”, underlines the agency in a press release. However, due to the rapid spread of Omicron, the pressure on the hospital system promises to be severe. “Even if a small proportion (…) requires hospitalization, it is a significant number of people”, so that the “Pressure on the NHS”, the public health system, “will increase”, underlines the text.

“Cases are currently very high in the UK and even a relatively low proportion requiring hospitalization will result in significant numbers of seriously ill people”, underlined the director general of the British agency, Jenny Harries. On the vaccination front, analysis indicates that while the boosters improve vaccine protection, it wears off quickly, showing a decrease of between 15% and 25% about 10 weeks after the boost is given. While greeting data “Promising”, Minister of Health Sajid Javid stressed that he was “too early” to determine next steps, and called on the British to be cautious during the holidays.

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