"Significant ability to infect recoverers": alarming findings from the first study on the new strain | Israel today

Although there is still no absolute information on the resistance of the vaccines to the Omicron variant, a first study done on the new strain outside the laboratory already shows that at least one group may be at increased risk: recovering from corona.

The study was conducted by researchers at the National Institute of South Africa for Infectious Diseases in recent weeks and their conclusion is that "urgent" steps should be taken in preparation for the spread of the variant, even if in the end it turns out not to be as dangerous as studies show. 

"The accumulation of evidence indicates a significant and prolonged risk of re-infection, consistent with the timing of the variant's rise in South Africa, and this suggests that its infection benefit stems at least in part from an increased ability to infect people previously infected with the virus," they wrote. A circular that has important implications for public health globally. " 

In South Africa only about 25 percent of the population received both doses of the vaccine (or in the case of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine the required single dose), yet the population is highly immune to the virus (at least until the arrival of the Americon ") Because of the four great waves of the corona hitting the country. 

The findings show that the new variant may lead to a large wave of infections even among populations with a large percentage of antibodies, although this study mostly bodes well for the recovering (i.e. those with non-vaccine antibodies). 

"There are urgent questions that remain unresolved regarding the strain's ability to overcome immunity that a vaccine provides," the researchers warned. 

The findings, which as mentioned are subject to peer review and do not constitute unequivocal proof, are based on an analysis of 2.8 million cases of infection in the country since 2020. The risk of re-infection in previous waves was low compared to re-infection in the current wave, the researchers found.

In fact, the risk of re-infection with the current wave of the "Omricon" is 2.4 times higher than those waves, which may indicate its ability to infect most significantly, although as mentioned this is a statistical analysis. 

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