By Erika Edwards -
NBC News
Despite the astronomical increase in COVID-19 cases due to the omicron variant,
there is hope that infections will decline
as rapidly as they grew, said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Control and Health, on Friday. Disease Prevention (CDC) at a press conference, the first without the rest of the White House pandemic task force in nearly six months.
The rise and fall of positive cases has always been described as "ripples" or waves, but Walensky suggested that the increase per omicron in the United States can be viewed more as the quick hit of an "ice crusher," with a rise and fall. a marked drop, something similar to what happened in South Africa.
"I think where we are seeing this really steep slope, we may also see a precipitous decline," Walensky said during the briefing.
[Thousands of children in the US have been orphaned by the COVID-19 pandemic]
People wait in line for a COVID-19 test in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022.Jae C. Hong / AP
New infections of the virus increased 204% in the United States compared to two weeks ago, according to an analysis by NBC News, sister network of Noticias Telemundo.
A record of cases in children
The CDC released new data on coronavirus-related hospitalizations, specifically among children, on Friday.
Hospitalization rates are increasing among the youngest
, ages 0 to 4, for whom there are no licensed COVID-19 vaccines yet.
Since the last week of December, 4.3 out of 100,000 children under the age of 5 have been admitted to a hospital for COVID-19, Walensky said.
"Although children still have the lowest rate of hospitalization among the different age groups, the number of minors who must be admitted now because of the virus is the highest registered in the entire pandemic," he explained.
In fact, more than a dozen states across the country have reported record pediatric hospitalizations related to the coronavirus, according to data from NBC News.
"This may very well be because there are more cases there," Walensky said.
Guidelines for isolation
During Friday's briefing, Dr. Henry Walke, chief of the CDC's Division of Preparedness and Emerging Infections, defended the agency's recent recommendations on isolation.
The agency said people can use rapid antigen tests around day five of their quarantine period if they want to, but it's not a requirement.
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The results of a rapid test in the later stages of the disease do not indicate how contagious a person may still be, Walke said.
"Regardless of the test result,
it is still recommended to wear a
well-fitted mask after those five days of isolation," he said.
Isolation is the five-day period after a person tests positive for COVID-19, in which they must stay away from others, including family members.
The CDC said that
people are most contagious
a day or two before symptoms start and for two to three days afterward.
["I thought one was the normal flu," says a flurone patient in the US]
The CDC does not require a negative test to leave isolation after five days, as long as patients no longer have symptoms.
However, all patients, even asymptomatic ones, must wear a mask for an additional five days.
Does having an omicron infection protect against the delta variant?
Walensky said preliminary evidence suggests that the omicron variant may help people protect against the delta variant.
But on the other hand, "we have indications that if he had delta, he is susceptible to infection with omicron," he said.
And would an omicron infection protect a person from being reinfected by this same variant?
The CDC is beginning studies to answer this question.
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It's an important topic, as the new variant has taken hold quickly in the United States, accounting for more than 95% of COVID-19 cases.
"This virus has changed and is constantly launching new attacks," Walensky said.
"As the virus changes, the scientific data changes," he noted.
The CDC informational meeting on Friday was the first for the agency alone since late July.
These informational meetings used to be a mainstay in the government's public health communication strategy.
In previous years, the CDC held weekly informational meetings on a variety of health topics that made headlines: the flu, vaping-related lung diseases, and even Ebola.
But the agency, historically considered a gold standard among public health officials around the world, has struggled in its communication strategy on matters related to the coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic.
["They have stopped listening to us." Why CDC updates put health departments to the test]
The first, and perhaps most notable example occurred during a CDC conference call in February 2020, when a former CDC official, Dr. Nancy Messonnier, warned Americans to prepare for an inevitable pandemic that would alter their lives. .
Walensky has participated in regular press conferences for the White House COVID-19 task force, usually alongside Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to the President, Joe Biden.
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Clear and direct communication from the CDC on its recommendations is key for the agency to explain to Americans the logic behind its guidelines.
"It's important to have access to the CDC scientists who are working on these issues" around the clock, said Glen Nowak, former CDC communications chief and current co-director of the University of Georgia Center for Health and Hazard Communication.
[Returning to remote study after Christmas break is frustrating for some parents]
The lack of communication "makes it appear that the CDC has not thought it through or has no answers to questions regarding their recommendations and policies," Nowak said.