After sequencing, two cases of the South African virus variant B.1.1.529, the so-called omicron variant, were confirmed for the first time, as the Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) announced today to the Coronavirus Coordination Unit of the State of Burgenland.
These are samples from returnees from South Africa that were sent by the Province of Burgenland to AGES, which carries out the majority of the evaluations of officially ordered PCR tests for the Province of Burgenland. In Burgenland there was only one contact person who had already tested negative twice and is in officially ordered quarantine.Probably no further spreadDue to the time lag – the people concerned have been in quarantine for 7 days – and the lack of further contacts, it came according to the current assessment to no retransmission. After the occurrence of the first Omikron case in Austria, the infected people responded to a public appeal by the State of Burgenland and subjected them to an officially ordered PCR test. They were promptly segregated and extensive contact tracing, which has already been completed, was carried out. The two infected people show only mild symptoms, they are fine. You have been in quarantine at home for 7 days. All PCR samples sent from Burgenland to the AGES for examination are routinely examined for possible mutations in the virus RNA using melting curve analysis, which indicate the presence of the omicron variant of the Corona virus. Positive samples from these examinations are then sequenced for all existing mutations in a certain gene segment. The new variant of the coronavirus, which first appeared in South Africa, has now arrived in Austria. How the virus develops will only show in the coming weeks. In any case, in order to contain the spread of the coronavirus, it is essential that emerging chains of infection are stopped as quickly as possible, emphasizes the AGES and the country’s coordination staff.
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