The Omicron variant is living up to dire predictions about how contagious it is but it's not yet clear if it causes more severe disease.
Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S. Federal health officials say Omicron accounted for an estimated 73% of new infections.It’s still too early to know — especially given that a breakthrough infection caused by Omicron should be milder than an infection in someone who is unvaccinated.
Early reports from South Africa suggested milder illness, but that could reflect the fact that the population there is very young, or that many people retained some immunity from a recent Delta infection. And the British study found no evidence that Omicron has been milder than Delta there, even with young adults — who would be expected to have milder illness — having higher rates of Omicron infections.Omicron’s impact on the COVID-19 pandemic will depend on a variety of factors that will take days to weeks for scientists to untangle.
“There’s a hint, and I think many of us are hopeful, that Omicron will be less severe. But I don’t think we can bet the farm on that,” said , who monitors variants for a research collaboration led by Harvard Medical School. “We’re still taking about SARS-CoV-2, a virus that has killed millions of people.”Based on the behavior of other variants, “if you’re older, if you have underlying conditions, if you’re obese, you’re more likely to have severe disease. I don’t think it’s going to be any different” than other variants, saidBut even if you don’t get very sick, an Omicron infection could certainly ruin the holidays.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Here's how effective boosters are against omicron | AP NewsAP Explainer: What the spread of the omicron virus variant will mean for the world remains unclear. Here’s the latest on what’s known and what's still unknown about omicron.
Read more »
Moderna Booster Increases Protection Against Omicron, Company SaysModerna on Monday announced that a booster dose of its COVID-19 vaccine increased levels of antibodies that fight the Omicron variant. Learn more:
Read more »
Moderna Says Its COVID-19 Booster Protects Against OmicronLab tests showed that the booster shot significantly increased antibodies able to fight omicron, but with an increase in the usual side effects, the company said.
Read more »
Moderna Reports Its Booster Is Effective Against OmicronThe company says its booster dose raises antibody levels against the variant
Read more »
Moderna says its COVID booster increases antibody levels against omicron variantModerna announced on Monday that its COVID-19 vaccine booster increases antibody levels against the omicron variant within a month of getting the shot.
Read more »