If it turns out to be true that omicron causes less severe cases than delta, this could have a significant impact on the course of the pandemic.
Three studies from Britain and Australia raise hopes that the rapidly spreading omicron variant could cause milder courses of COVID-19. Studies in England and Scotland show that omicron infections lead to fewer hospitalizations than those caused by the delta variant.
According to an English study, the number of hospitalizations with omicron decreased between 20% and 25% compared to delta. In laboratory experiments, the omicron pseudoviruses produced were shown to be less capable of infecting lung cells.
According to the researchers, this could mean that, although omicron may partially escape an existing immune response (immune escape) due to numerous spike protein mutations, it does not infect cells as successfully and therefore spreads less in the body. Body. However, it remains to be clarified whether these laboratory studies can be carried over into the real world.
Encouraging data
Although these preprints have not yet been independently verified, they could confirm earlier studies from South Africa, where mainly milder courses were observed from very early on. According to the South African study, omicron causes up to 80% less risk of hospitalization than delta. However, it remains unclear whether the results can be carried over to aging Europe due to the average age of South Africa’s population being younger.
The data from New South Wales, Australia, are also encouraging, according to Christian Drosten, chief virologist at the Berlin Charité. In the mostly vaccinated society, with omicron hospital admissions were reduced to less than half.
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However, excessive optimism is not appropriate, because there are still many aspects to clarify. The milder courses could also be related to the fact that the new variant of the virus is affecting population groups that already have strengthened immunity due to vaccines or previous infections.
However, omicron is still dangerous because the highly contagious variant spreads very quickly, causing many to fall ill in a very short time. Although there are proportionally fewer severe cases, the high number of infections in the looming outbreak can put a strain on healthcare systems.
Is the end of the pandemic in sight?
If it turns out to be true that omicron causes less severe cases than delta, this could also have a significant impact on the course of the pandemic. The reason is that omicron will soon have displaced the delta variant. It is true that it will not be possible to completely eradicate the pathogen worldwide so quickly. But SARS-CoV-2 will probably then become endemic, that is, there will no longer be a global pandemic, but the virus will reappear locally at certain times, just like the flu virus reappears in winter. Thus, we should be able to protect ourselves against it, as with the annual flu vaccine.
Booster shots work
Another piece of good news is that Novavax’s vaccine, recently approved in the EU, also offers effective protection against the omicron variant, according to the company. Novavax’s vaccine is a protein vaccine, which constitutes a real alternative in the worldwide vaccination campaign for skeptics, due to its proven vaccination technique. If the unvaccinated are not fundamentally opposed to vaccination, they could soon be immunized with protein vaccines, which have already been used for decades, to protect against polio, tetanus, hepatitis B or even the flu.
But above all, protein vaccines are needed worldwide for vaccination campaigns because they are comparatively cheap to produce and are much easier to transport and store at 2-8 ° C than frozen mRNA vaccines. Furthermore, protein-based vaccines could also be produced in developing countries.
Swedish-British manufacturer AstraZeneca also has positive news, as its vector vaccine works well as a booster against omicron. Already the vaccine manufacturers BioNTech / Pfizer and Moderna had reported that a third dose with their mRNA vaccines was effective against the new variant.
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First anti-coronavirus tablet approved in the US
And there is other good news at the end of the year. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted emergency approval for the Paxlovid tablet from US manufacturer Pfizer.
According to Pfizer, an interim analysis of test results showed that the drug reduced the risk of hospitalization and death in COVID-19 patients by 89%. Paxlovid consists, among other things, of the active substance nirmatrelvir, which inhibits a SARS-CoV-2 protein and thus prevents the virus from replicating. Possible side effects include altered sense of taste, diarrhea, high blood pressure, and muscle pain.
This is the first anti-COVID drug in the United States that can be taken in tablet form. At the first sign of infection, the drug should be able to be prescribed by a doctor for people 12 years of age or older, if there is an increased risk of the disease getting worse. Deliveries could begin this year, and more than 250,000 doses are expected to be available as early as January.
A week ago, the EU Medicines Agency had already said that Paxlovid could be used to treat adult patients who do not need supplemental oxygen and who are at increased risk of severe disease progression. The drug has not yet been officially approved in the EU, but the procedure is underway. (I)
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
