The official noted that hospitals are not overwhelmed because of Omicron patients
Johannesburg:
Angelique Coetzee, president of the South African Medical Association, told Sputnik on Saturday that the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus causes mild illness, with no prominent syndromes.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday identified the new South African strain as one of concern, as it is reported to carry a large number of mutations – 32 – that could make it contagious. and more dangerous. WHO has named it Omicron, the 15th letter of the Greek alphabet.
“It represents a mild illness with symptoms of muscle pain and fatigue for a day or two, feeling unwell. So far, we have found that infected people have not lost their taste or smell. feeling. They may have a mild cough. There are no prominent symptoms. Symptoms. Among those infected, some are currently being treated at home,” Ms. Coetzee said.
The official noted that hospitals are not overwhelmed with Omicron patients and that the new strain of bacteria has not been detected in vaccinated people. At the same time, the situation may be different for those who have not been vaccinated.
“We’ll only know this in two weeks. Yes, it’s transmittable, but right now, as medical practitioners, we don’t know why there’s so much hype when it comes to them. We’re still working on it. We’ll only know after two to three weeks because there are some patients that are hospitalized and these are young people aged 40 and under,” added Ms Coetzee.
The chairwoman also criticized the decision to ban flights from South Africa by some countries as premature because there is not enough information about how dangerous it is.
Following reports of the new variant, the United States, European Union, Canada, Israel, Australia, and others have restricted travel from several southern African countries because of health concerns.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)
