Tag: omicron variant

  • New strain of Coronavirus detected in France, investigation underway

    New strain of Coronavirus detected in France, investigation underway

    French scientists have identified a new variant of coronavirus with 46 mutations, named IHU or variant B.1.640.2. It infected 12 people in Southeast France.

    According to the hospital, IHU Mediterranee in Marseille, the strain of coronavirus was detected in early December in a traveller who returned to France from the African country, Cameroon who reportedly infected 12 people. This new strain has more mutations than the omicron variant of coronavirus.

    The paper was published in a preprint server for Health Sciences, medRxiv, in which researchers found that “46 mutations” have not been spotted in any other countries nor recognised by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

    The authors of the paper said, “subsequent detection … of three mutations in the spike gene to screen for variants … did not correspond to the pattern of the delta variant involved in almost all SARS-CoV-2 infections at that time.”

    It is not yet decided by scientists if the new strain is infectious as compared to the omicron variant though it has more mutation than omicron.

    An epidemiologist and fellow at the Federation of American Scientists, Feigl Ding said, “What makes a variant more well-known and dangerous is its ability to multiply because of the number of mutations it has in relation to the original virus.”

    He continued, “This is when it becomes a ‘variant of concern’ — like omicron, which is more contagious and more past immunity evasive. It remains to be seen in which category this new variant will fall.”

    Earlier, Israel detected the first case of Florana disease which is a double infection of covid and influenza on December 30, 2021.

  • ‘Masks, avoid crowds, vaccinate’: Dr Faisal Sultan urges people to take Omicron seriously

    ‘Masks, avoid crowds, vaccinate’: Dr Faisal Sultan urges people to take Omicron seriously

    Urging people not to take the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 lightly, Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on health Dr. Faisal Sultan on Tuesday said there will be some increase in hospitalisation of patients in the next one to two weeks and urged people to wear masks, avoid crowds and get vaccinated at the earliest. It takes 1-2 weeks for hospitalisations to go up, says the health minister as Omicron cases rise.

    So far Pakistan has recorded 372 cases of the Omicron variant, Dr Faisal Sultan, told Reuters.

    “It’s still a bit early to draw conclusions since it takes 1-2 weeks for hospitalisations to go up. Also, let us see how the virus behaves regarding virulence”, Dr Sultan said when asked as to why hospitalisations were not going up in Karachi despite an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases due to the spread of the Omicron variant.

    “At the moment, we are receiving one or two patients with Covid-19 on daily basis, but so far, we have not found anybody infected with Omicron Variant of the Covid-19”, Dr Abdul Wahid Rajput, Medical Superintendent of the Infectious Diseases Hospital, affiliated with Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) told The News.

     “There will be some increase in hospitalisation. How much, depends on the degree of spread and infection. International evidence suggests it spreads fast; how much serious sickness it causes will be evident in a week or two (for us)”, Dr Sultan added.

    “What I would say is this: we should not take it lightly”, he warned.

    When asked if the government was worried about the low vaccination rate in major cities, including Karachi and Lahore, he said: “We want it (vaccination) higher for sure. I am happy that the vaccination rates picked up with time but we still have some distance to still go. So I would not say I am worried but that we need to enhance the numbers further.”

    “Masks. Masks. Masks. Avoid crowds. Vaccinate. Ventilate,” was his advice to people in Karachi.

  • 46% of Pakistanis are fully vaccinated against Covid-19

    National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) Cheif Asad Umar has revealed 46 per cent of Pakistan’s eligible population has been fully vaccinated against coronavirus.

    In a tweet, the federal minister said, “Amongst the federating units, Islamabad leads with 77 per cent fully vaccinated persons. Punjab is at 51 per cent, Gilgit-Baltistan 46 per cent, Azad Jammu and Kashmir 45 per cent, Balochistan 42 per cent, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 41 per cent, and Sindh at 37 per cent.”

    Umar also confirmed that 63 per cent of the country’s population has been administered the first dose of the vaccine.

    The country reported over 500 covid cases in a day on Friday, positivity rate stands at one per cent.

    Health experts have linked the rise in Covid-19 cases with the Omicron variant as nearly 89 cases of the new strain have been reported alone in Karachi.

  • More than 4500 flights cancelled as Omicron impacts flight crews

    Over 4500 flights have been cancelled around the world and thousands more delayed due to the outbreak of the highly infectious Omicron variant of coronavirus, reports Al Jazeera.

    At least 2,000 flights were cancelled worldwide on Christmas Day.

    According to the tracking website flightaware.com, 616 flights originating from or headed to the United States (US) airports were cancelled and more than 8,000 were delayed.

    Pilots, flights attendants and other staff have been calling in sick or having to quarantine after exposure to Covid, forcing international airlines (Lufthansa, Delta, United Airlines) to cancel flights during one of the years peak travel periods.

    United Airlines who cancelled 185 flights on Christmas eve, in a statement, said, “The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation.”

    Earlier this week, it was reported that the rapidly spreading Omicron variant is the dominant Covid strain in the US, representing 73 per cent of sequenced cases.

  • Omicron Variant: ‘Need for vaccination even more urgent,’ says Asad Umar

    Omicron Variant: ‘Need for vaccination even more urgent,’ says Asad Umar

    Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives and head of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), Asad Umar, has stressed upon the need of getting vaccinated with the arrival of the Omicron variant. “With arrival of omicron variant the need for vaccination even more urgent. So far 8 crore 75 lakh Pakistani’s have taken at least one dose and 6 crore people are fully vaccinated,” the minister wrote in a tweet.

    On December 13, the NCOC confirmed the first case of the Omicron variant in Pakistan.

    NCOC also stressed upon the importance of getting vaccinated to stay safe from new variants.