Study reveals Omicron spread 70 Times Faster than Delta

The omicron spread around 70 times faster than delta and the original Covid-19 strain, though the severity of illness is likely to be much lower, according to a University of Hong Kong study that adds weight to the early on-ground observations from South African doctors.

The supercharged speed of omicron’s spread in the human bronchus was found 24 hours following infection, according to a Wednesday statement from the university. The study, conducted by a team of researchers led byMichael Chan Chi-wai, found that the newest variant of concern replicated less efficiently more than 10 times lower in the human lung tissue than the original strain which may signal “lower severity of disease.”

The study, which suggests that omicron jumps faster from one person to another but doesn’t damage lung tissues as much as its predecessor strains did, is currently under peer review for publication in a scientific journal. Bloomberg didn’t have access to the entire study. With scientists racing to determine how transmissible, virulent and evasive omicron is it has already travelled to at least 77 nations.

Within three weeks of being first detected in southern Africa the new research out of Hong Kong may add ballast to descriptions by some physicians that most infections have so far been mostly mild and not requiring hospitalizations. Many researchers are now watching if the most mutated coronavirus variant will crowd out other strains and pave way for the pandemic to slowly ebb away as an endemic where the world learns to live with the pathogen.

Omicron Alert Omicron cases rises in India total 8 omicron cases found in Delhi and Rajasthan. National capital Delhi and Rajasthan in Omicron Alert. Four new Omicron cases detected in Delhi taking the total number of cases to 6. Of the 6 cases, 1 patient has been discharged from the hospital. Currently, 35 Covid positive patients & 3 suspected cases admitted to LNJP hospital.

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Four more cases have been reported, the health condition of these patients is stable. All previous Omicron cases in the State have tested COVID negative now: Rajasthan Health Minister Parsadi Lal Meena said on Omicron cases. Delhi’s first patient of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, a 37-year-old man, has been discharged from the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) hospital, officials said on Tuesday. The man, a resident of Ranchi, had travelled from Tanzania to Doha and from there, to Delhi on a Qatar Airways flight on December 2.