Quite officially: 10 facts about Omicron from the Ministry of Health

The Omicron strain is gradually replacing Delta and conquering the world. So, in the USA, in 97% of cases of infection, it is Omicron that is fixed. In Ukraine, it is also detected, but not on such a scale as in America or Europe. But, according to the chief sanitary doctor of Ukraine Igor Kuzin, at the end of January we will have a new wave of coronavirus caused precisely "Omicronome". And due to the fact that Delta will also operate in the country, according to Olga Golubovskaya, this wave will be much more powerful than the autumn one.

Today, the Ukrainian Ministry of Health published 10 facts about the Omicron strain, which were obtained on the basis of international studies.

1. "Omicron" more often lead to infection in the home foci in comparison with the "Delta" strain

2. The new strain has a shorter incubation period. On average, it is 3 days.

3. Affects the younger age group. If the average age of persons infected with the Delta strain was 38.3 years, then those who became infected with Omicron was 30.8 years.

4. The risk of re-infection also increases. In the case of Delta, it was about 2.5%, for Omicron - 13%.

5. Previously, Omicron is 2.9 times more contagious than Delta. In countries where it has already been detected, a doubling of cases of infection occurs in 1.53 days. That is, today, for example, 20 people were infected. In a day and a half there will be 40 infected.

6. There is currently no information to evaluate any change in the severity of the infection caused by Omicron. Preliminary data indicate that there are no new unusual symptoms in patients infected with this strain.

7. The data indicate a reduced risk of hospitalization among those infected with this strain. Although an increase in the number of infections can also cause a greater burden on the medical system. Compared to the Delta strain, cases of Omicron infection have a 15-20% lower risk of hospitalization and a 41% lower risk of hospitalization with a stay of 1 or more nights in the hospital.

8. Omicron's risk of ending up in emergency rooms or hospitalization is half that of Delta.

9. Only 0.6% of patients with Omicron were hospitalized. With other strains, this figure was 1.6%.

10. At the same time, data on hospitalizations are not conclusive because in many countries there is a delay between the diagnosis of the disease and the actual admission to hospital. In addition, most of the studies were conducted in countries where vaccination rates are high, so fewer people end up in hospitals.

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