Against the backdrop of a record number of people infected in the UK - encouraging news
: Patients in the corona variant of the corona are less likely to need hospitalization compared to those who contracted the Delta variant of the virus - the UK Public Health Agency announced today (Thursday).
According to preliminary data from the agency, the chance of people infected with Omicron being hospitalized is 50% to 70% lower than those infected with Delta.
However, the agency warned that its analysis was "preliminary and largely uncertain, and further research is needed to confirm these findings."
This is due to the currently small number of Omicron patients in hospitals in the United Kingdom, as well as given the fact that most of them are from younger age groups than those of Delta patients.
Either way, the agency's executive director, Jenny Harris, told German television network DW that it was "an encouraging sign that people infected with Omicron may be at relatively lower risk of hospitalization than those infected with other variations."
The title of the British report we waited for -
a 50-70% reduction in hospitalization from Omicron in relation to Delta
means -
on the one hand, good news on the
other - in light of the extent of infection - personal risk and cumulative burden are likely to be significant
yet we have not seen the full report. Most patients are young https://t.co/rPhqqUJH5H
- Ran Balicer (@RanBalicer) December 23, 2021
Prof. Ran Blitzer, founder and director of the Clalit Health Services Research Institute, commented on Twitter about the publication and wrote that this is "his report we have been waiting for: on the one hand, good news;
On the other hand, in light of the extent of the infections - the personal risk and the cumulative burden are likely to still be significant. "
It should be noted that the Agency's findings are consistent with recent research on the subject conducted at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland as well as at the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London, one of the highest ranked universities in Europe.
A study conducted in South Africa, in which the variation was first identified, also suggested that the omicron may be milder than feared at the beginning of its eruption.
At the same time, scientists around the world warn that although the variant may be less severe, its rapid spread may cause a load that will cause health systems to collapse faster than the Delta strain.
Were we wrong?
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