Omicron spreads faster and weakens jabs but causes less severe symptoms: WHO

Is it so important for you to be "right" about everything that you need to pick things apart with semantics?

I share your sentiment.

@virusrex

Is it so important for you to be "right" about everything that you need to pick things apart with semantics? We are saying the same thing and you don't even realize it. Let me break my original post down to it's most basic point.... It's too early to tell how serious omicron is!

how do you conclude populations not so young would expect worse problems?

Again, this is a "could" not a "would" situation, the whole point is the lack of data to conclude things, so if you can't prove other populations different from the one being examined could do the same, better or worse then it is justified to be as careful as possible before making conclusions.

This is specially true with the COVID produced by other variants being worse in population other than young people, which give reasonable grounds to suspect the same can happen with Omicron.

To help you, in my initial post I am pointing out that the headline of this article is incorrect

And I am telling you it is not. saying that Omicron "causes less severe symptoms" is true, for the very limited population from which the data is available, not for any other population, therefore it is also true that the clinical severity can't be characterized yet. Higher spreading ability, and increased number of reinfections can still means the most vulnerable population could deal with much more severe symptoms.

Secondly, not a single person has died from Omicron, as far as we know.

Coming from very limited data this is is not an strong argument, lets say one country have one death out of 20 identified cases, this would mean a 5% lethality rate, which of course completely depends on having low amount of detections. It is the same problem. The best course of action is to assume this variant can become a huge problem and take steps to prevent it until it becomes clear this is not the case.

First Omicron hospitalisations and a death reported in the UK today. It’s still early days, the jury is still out. In the meantime, with the UK evidence a booster vaccination increases it’s effectiveness markedly getting third jab early is a no brainer, even if it is ‘just in case’.

Give it a few more weeks. Fingers crossed until then.

Omicron has been circulating far earlier than November 24. More than likely since the beginning of November, especially since its thought it didnt originate in South Africa, but Botswana, where screening for new variants is nothing like the level of South Africa.

Secondly, not a single person has died from Omicron, as far as we know.

In Australia there are probably 70 people infected with it. There is 1 person in hospital. One.

If this was Delta deadly, there would already be dozens dead, especially in South Africa where the double dose rate is 25%. Thats the other promising aspect, no deaths in a country with 25% vax rate, what about a country with 70 ot 80%?

I think the jury is in on Omicron. But that doesnt mean its not a cause for concern because even a low percentage of a very large scale outbreak can still overwhelm hospitals. At the very least, it makes elective surgeries and treatments for ailments pushed further on the back burner, like many have been for 2 years now.

So its a case of mixed fortunes.

The real worry is the next variant....

Keep up your Vitamin D, K2 and Zinc and strongly consider the vaccines is my 2c.

So Omicron os blessings in Disguise for the world from Africa It has made a natural free n super effective vaccine called omicron Not vaccine bt Omicron will end this Chindamics

@virusrex

Read my initial post again.

To help you, in my initial post I am pointing out that the headline of this article is incorrect. I am pointing out that the headline claims less severe disease, but the article itself explains that the data is still insufficient to draw that conclusion.

virusrexToday  02:43 pm JST

In absence of epidemiological and demographic data

how do you conclude populations not so young would expect worse problems?

I'm assuming no such thing. Your problem is you didn't understand my po

In absence of epidemiological and demographic data (the situation we are now with Omicron) the early data (that it has caused less severe symptoms) can't be generalized (determine a level of clinical severity).

In an extreme example if it has caused 20 hospitalizations and zero deaths for every 1000 identified infections it looks like it is a mild infection, but if that is happening in a population 99% in its 20s, and half of the patients were already vaccinated or previously infected then the opposite becomes likely. The simple fact it is more easily transmitted would mean that much worse problems would be expected in populations that are not so young and were considered up until this point as "protected"

your problem is assuming

I'm assuming no such thing. Your problem is you didn't understand my post.

Yet the headline claims the WHO says it causes less severe symptoms. Lazy reporting.

No such thing, your problem is assuming less severity can only mean lower impact on public health, with higher spreading ability this is not the case and can even be a much more serious problem.

Yeah, they will never commit themselves to acknowledge this if it will negatively affect vaccine sales.

Non-argument based on conspiracy theories only demonstrate actual arguments are impossible to find.

As of today, no one in the world has died from this variant and as of today,

Not at all and realistically impossible judging from the hospitalization rates, the only thing that you can say is that nobody has been tested for omicron and died, which is something completely different.

Well, in theory this could be maaaaybe good? Could it mean that the virus is mutating down and eventually becoming something like a lesser flu? And became what some posters have said in the past, just another virus that will always be around but with less consequences than when it was a pandemic?

As of today, no one in the world has died from this variant and as of today, it seems to be like a mild 24 hour virus with no after effects.

Obviously we need more panic.

Omicron infections have so far caused "mild" illness or asymptomatic cases, but the WHO said the data was insufficient to establish the variant's clinical severity.

Yeah, they will never commit themselves to acknowledge this if it will negatively affect vaccine sales.

Countries with sufficient vaccine supplies such as Britain and France have encouraged their populations to receive a third "booster" jab to fight Omicron.

Obviously. Never let a crisis go to waste...

lets just wait and see what the NEXT variant brings

Omicron infections have so far caused "mild" illness or asymptomatic cases, but the WHO said the data was insufficient to establish the variant's clinical severity.

Yet the headline claims the WHO says it causes less severe symptoms. Lazy reporting. No wonder there are people claiming definitively that it is less severe. Many people don't bother reading past headlines. Too early for celebration. Give it a few more weeks. Fingers crossed until then.