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Researchers found that those who contract the Omicron variant are 80 percent less likely to be hospitalized, compared to other strains, according to a new study released by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases.
Once admitted to the hospital, the risk of severe disease doesn’t differ from other variants; however, the researchers led by scientists Nicole Walter and Cheryl Cohen said.
The study evaluated the current fourth wave of COVID-19 infections in South Africans, where the Omicron variant is believed to have originated.
Compared to Delta infections in South Africa between April and November this year, Omicron infections are associated with a 70 percent lower risk of severe disease, researchers said. The Omicron data was collected for two months leading through November.
“It's too early to be able to determine the precise severity of disease but inklings that we are getting, and we must remember these are still in the form of anecdotal,” infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said in early December.
“But it appears that with the cases that are seen, we are not seeing a very severe profile of disease."
Since being identified by South African scientists in November, the Omicron variant has fueled a new record-setting number of new cases across the country.
Researchers noted that it is unclear to what extent Omicron is less severe than earlier strains, and to what extent the drop is due to more immunity in the population, from both previous infections and vaccinations.
“It is difficult to disentangle the relative contribution of high levels of previous population immunity versus intrinsic lower virulence to the observed lower disease severity,” they wrote.
However, the findings could provide some good news, according to some healthcare professionals.
“New pre-print from South Africa suggests that, at least among those vaccinated and/or previously infected, Omicron is much less severe than Delta,” Tom Frieden, a former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) posted online. “Will that hold true in the US with an older population? We'll find out in the coming weeks.”
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