‘Peak of wave soon, but it may also ebb fast’ Global Data & Our Experience Reveal Omicron Is Mostly Asymptomatic Or Mild: NTAGI Chief

 

‘Peak of wave soon, but it may also ebb fast’

Global Data & Our Experience Reveal Omicron Is Mostly Asymptomatic Or Mild: NTAGI Chief

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Nisha.Nambiar@timesgroup.com

09.01.2022

Pune: National health experts feel that though Covid cases may peak in India very soon, the current wave driven by the Omicron variant of the virus may ebb equally fast.

“Global data and our own experience during the past five weeks reveal the infection caused by Omicron is mostly asymptomatic or mild. A few seriously ill hospitalized patients either had other co-morbidities and are over 60 years of age. The overall hospitalization rate for people affected by Omicron is 1-2%, which is much less to the rate of people requiring care in hospitals during the wave caused by Delta,” Dr N K Arora, chairman of the Covid-19 working group of the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization told TOI on Saturday.

“Over 80% of people in the country have been naturally infected by the virus. Over 91% adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine, while more than 66% people aged above 18 years have received both doses. Keeping all this in mind, the overall impact of the current surge is likely to be much less. There’s no need to panic. But we should remain vigilant and follow Covid protocols,” he said.

With India reporting 1. 41 lakh infections in 24 hours and active cases hovering around 4. 8 lakh, the expert said the surge was indicative of the third wave. “But just like the rise, a fall can also be expected in the areas reporting Omicron cases,” Dr Arora said.

More than 50% of the fresh Omicron cases are being reported from major Indian cities. Maharashtra is leading the tally, closely followed by West Bengal, Delhi, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Kerala and Gujarat. Dr Arora said most of the cases were asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic, just as it was observed in South Africa.

Indian Council of Medi- cal Research (ICMR) additional director general Dr Samiran Panda told TOI that the active Covid curve would begin to flatten within three months in the areas recently registering the surge. “For this, people have to abide by Covid protocols and act appropriately. The projection we have generated through the modelling exercise shows that if Omicron is the dominant variant in an area, the surge will sharply go upwards and fall in three months,” he said.

“The metropolitan areas have Omicron as the major variant. But in areas such as the north-east, it is more the Delta variant that is causing stress on the health system. The country does not have a homogenous representation of the epidemic,” Dr Panda said.

Full report on www. toi. in