Omicron; A Variant of Concern
Humanity can’t seem to catch a break as a new variant of COVID-19 is being announced after a while. Since its first discovery at the beginning of 2020, many strains of COVID-19 have been identified. Omicron, the latest variant of SARS-CoV-2 began to spread and surpass other variants in late 2021. This variant seems wildly different from the previous ones. It became obvious that the mutations gave omicron a bizarre ability to evade our vaccines and spread quickly.
Since it was first reported, people are very concerned about its severity, symptoms, and more of that about its vaccine. It has taken longer to figure out, what distinguishes omicron from its forerunners. Scientists are racing to figure out how existing vaccines can hold up against this variant? Or do we need to have another vaccine for omicron?
Though a lot of work needs to be done to answer these questions, we can infer about omicron based on public health and scientific insights.
How Severe is Omicron?
Several lines of evidence from around the world imply that the Omicron variation is responsible for a milder form of COVID-19. In November 2021, when Omicron was first discovered in South Africa, a private health insurance administrator revealed in mid-December that adults infected with Omicron were 29 percent less likely to be hospitalized than adults infected several months previously.
Unlike Delta, which first appeared in December 2020 and was connected to a significant increase in hospitalizations and fatalities the previous year, Omicron didn’t appear to be as deadly on a per-infected-person basis. Despite this, hospitals, clinics, and ICUs have continued to fill up as the number of new cases and hospitalizations in the United States has surpassed 145,000, in part due to a series of mutations in the virus’s spike protein, which make vaccines far less effective at stopping infection than they were with previous variants. The simultaneous spike in deaths that occurred shortly after case numbers in past surges is now beginning to show up.
Though omicron is less severe than the previous ones it still poses danger to those who don’t have any preexisting immunity, whether it’s because they’re unvaccinated or uninfected or having chronic illnesses, disabilities, or conditions that leave them immune-compromised, are more likely to face severe symptoms and death as a result of an Omicron infection.
Also, keep in view that scientists are still learning about its severity.
Are the Existing Vaccines are Helpful against Omicron?
Scientists are studying the effectiveness of existing vaccines against omicron and these studies are underway. We do not have a complete picture yet, but scientists have so far managed to estimate the effectiveness of existing vaccines against omicron. And it indicates that two doses of vaccines like Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna don’t provide much protection against the infection. However, two doses of vaccine with booster shot appear to protect against omicron.
According to a study, mRNA vaccines are 93 percent effective at protecting against delta infection seven days after the booster, but it falls to 60 percent effective against omicron infection. According to the expert, the vaccines are effective against all variations up to delta. Similar findings have also come out of the United States, according to researchers, emphasizing the importance of a third or fourth treatment for anyone who is immune-compromised. It was also discovered that no booster recipients who are recovered from covid ended up in the hospital. They also add it does not guarantee that you will not end up in the hospital, but it does greatly minimize the chances.
Do we need another Vaccine for Omicron?
The booster jab against omicron provides protection against the infection but questions still churn over how much they will provide protection? And how often they will be needed? And hence the main question arises do we really need another vaccine for omicron?
With Omicron, which is highly contagious, there’s a lot of debate about omicron-specific vaccines whether that will be necessary. Scientists are gathering evidence that suggests it’s not causing such a severe infection. And if that’s the case, our current vaccines plus boosters provide some protection against Omicron, then an Omicron-specific vaccine is unlikely to be required. Those decisions, however, have yet to be taken.
“We may or may not need to create a new vaccine tailored to new variants in the future,” said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.
According to the CEO of Pfizer, we may need a fourth shoot as the preceding data showed that the omicron can debilitate the antibodies that are generated by the existing vaccines. And we need the 4th dose sooner rather than later.
“With Omicron we need to wait and see because we have very little information. We may need it faster,” he added.
Despite these remarks, the World Health Organization (WHO) has yet to support a global booster shot, indicating that more data is needed before a decision can be made.
Vaccines, on the other hand, will not be our sole weapon against Omicron. Antivirals may also help to prevent infections from becoming more serious. Paxlovid, Pfizer’s antiviral tablet, and Molnupiravir, Merck’s antiviral, are both in clinical studies.
How do Omicron Symptoms Differ from Prior Variants?
As omicron started spreading, Doctors noticed subtle variations in their patients’ symptoms compared to prior variants. Sore throats, sneezing, and runny noses were all becoming more common. Fevers, coughing, and loss of taste or smell were once common symptoms of COVID-19, but they had dwindled now.
According to the report from South Africa, the common symptoms that have been seen to date are a scratchy or sore throat, nasal congestion, a dry cough, and muscle pain, particularly low back pain.
The most-reported Omicron symptoms, especially in persons who have been vaccinated, are quite similar to those of a cold.
“There’s probably a huge amount of overlap between Omicron and the prior variants because they are essentially doing the same thing,” said Dr. Otto O. Yang, an infectious disease physician at the University of California, Los Angeles. “If there are differences, they’re probably fairly subtle.”
Though more contagious than the prior variants, omicron doesn’t seem to cause severe illness in patients than delta variant. It has been predicted to be a more dominant variant in some places, and already outstripping the delta variant in some countries. Scientists are still learning about its severity, and the case of omicron-specific vaccine is under debate. Still, there are many things we can do to protect ourselves. Everyone should get vaccinated, wear a mask, avoid crowds, and improve ventilation in homes, offices, and institutes.
As much remains unknown about the virus, this information is still helpful for us to know how we can act in the coming days.
Stay safe, stay healthy, and stick to the science to know more about it.
