Omicron as severe as previous COVID variants, large study finds

(Reuters) – The Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV2 virus is intrinsically as extreme as earlier variants, not like assumptions made in earlier research that it was extra transmissible however much less extreme, a big examine in the US has discovered.

“We discovered that the dangers of hospitalization and mortality had been almost an identical between intervals,” stated 4 scientists who carried out the examine based mostly on data of 130,000 COVID-19 sufferers, referring to instances prior to now two years when completely different variants had been dominant internationally.

The examine, which is present process peer assessment at Nature Portfolio and was posted on Analysis Sq. on Might 2, was adjusted for confounders together with demographics, vaccination standing, and the Charlson comorbidity index that predicts the danger of demise inside a yr of hospitalization for sufferers with particular comorbid circumstances.

The research that assumed that the Omicron variant was much less extreme had been carried out in varied locations together with South Africa, Scotland, England, and Canada, stated the scientists from Massachusetts Basic Hospital, Minerva College and Harvard Medical College.

They stated their examine may have a number of limitations, together with the chance that it underestimated the variety of vaccinated sufferers in newer COVID waves, and the entire variety of infections, as a result of it excluded sufferers who carried out at-home speedy checks.

(Reporting by Sayantani Ghosh in Singapore; Modifying by Robert Birsel)