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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsOmicron may cause milder symptoms. But experts aren't breathing easy yet.
(NBC News) Amid the global concern over a new coronavirus strain has been one piece of hopeful news: Those infected with the omicron variant appear to have very mild symptoms, according to the South African doctor who first spotted the variant.
Dr. Angelique Coetzee told the BBC that neither she nor her colleagues had admitted anyone who had the strain to the hospital so far. Her patients had experienced extreme fatigue but no loss of taste or smell, which are often telltale symptoms of Covid-19, she said.
The early reports are encouraging, epidemiologists and other experts said.
But they cautioned that there is too little data to draw any conclusions yet. Their bigger concern, they said, is how quickly the omicron variant, with its high number of mutations, might spread and how it will match up against vaccines.
I dont think we know anything about the virulence. What were worried more about is the transmissibility and the immune-evasion capabilities, said Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease doctor who is a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. ...................(more)
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/omicron-may-cause-milder-symptoms-experts-arent-breathing-sigh-relief-rcna6920
snowybirdie
(5,190 posts)Why Moderna CEO, threw a wrench into things by saying his vaccine likely won't work against the new varient? So confusing.
Tomconroy
(7,611 posts)Would show the vaccine wouldn't be as effective but whose results wouldn't be definitive. But the Moderns guy didn't explain his thinking. I was curious too.
Klaralven
(7,510 posts)He was relatively optimistic in his interview on CNBC in the morning. Later in the day he gave an interview with Financial Times.
In between, he apparently got new results from the scientists working on Omicron.
LisaL
(44,962 posts)But it has so many mutations that they might have made a reasonable assumption that vaccine unlikely to work well against it.
Klaralven
(7,510 posts)Whether they have received virus cultures is unclear, but they have probably just become available.
Probably they have early results from computer modeling of how the mutations change the shape and other aspects of the spike protein.
The change must be significant because one of the things that first alerted the presence of Omicron was that the PCR-RT tests were not detecting the S protein.
helpisontheway
(5,004 posts)and have many health issues. I think that could make our cases of severe covid and deaths higher. Also, if a larger part of our population is older than other places it could make a difference.
LisaL
(44,962 posts)We have a lot of obese people in the US. If vaccines work very poorly against Omicron it's likely not going to be good.
Sneederbunk
(14,207 posts)GusBob
(7,286 posts)One side thinks Omicron is a concern and attention should be given
The other side thinks its a nothing burger and getting too much attention ( near as I can tell )
Its an interesting dynamic to say the least. I am wondering the cause...is it pandemic fatigue or pandemic overkill?
Sneederbunk
(14,207 posts)Those of us who will let science tell us what to do.
Tomconroy
(7,611 posts)About 10:30 when Powell said something about tapering bond purchases.
NewHendoLib
(59,940 posts)Double hit
Tomconroy
(7,611 posts)JanMichael
(24,846 posts)None not any idea so anybody that thinks they do know doesn't know.