Omicron BA.2 less severe than original COVID variant, says study

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The US-based research team was led by investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital. It found that more than half of the 1,02,315 confirmed COVID cases detected in the US from 3 March 2020 to 20 June 2022 were Omicron variants. Of the total cases under observation, 20,770 were labeled as the delta variant, 52,605 were labeled as the omicron b.1.1.1.529 variant, the original omicron variant and 28,940 were labeled as the omicron b.2 subvariant Were.

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The mortality rate for Delta was found to be 0.7 percent, compared to 0.4 percent for the original Omicron version. Whereas, the lowest scorer was Omicron BA.2, which accounted for 0.3 percent of the mortality rate.

According to the researchers, the risks of death due to Omicron BA.2 were much lower than the delta version and the original Omicron version.

“While the SARS-CoV-2 virus has always had the potential to mutate into a more lethal form, when you look at the recent trajectory of the delta, Omicron BA.1, for Omicron BA.2, the virus is intrinsically less is going serious. Hopefully, this trend will continue,” said the study’s lead author, Zachary Strasser.

Delta and Omicron patients were more likely to be hospitalized

The research validated the common belief about the severity of the delta variant and the omicron variant and its sub-variants. It said patients suffering from the Delta and the original Omicron version require more hospital care, invasive ventilation and intensive care admission.

The discovery is another confirmation that the novel coronavirus is becoming less severe with its mutations.

The research used a method called entropy balancing, which included potential confounding factors such as prior infection, vaccination, treatment and comorbidities. This method helped this study to accurately assess the severity of SARS-CoV-2.

The method was applied to data leveraged from Mass General Brigham’s electronic health records system. The system is linked to a COVID-19 vaccine registry, the researchers informed.

The study’s lead author, Zachary Strasser, said the team will continue to use the analytics system and methodology to find answers to many more questions related to the virus. The team may start research based on similar methodology to find out the effectiveness of vaccination and COVID treatment.

Omicron includes several sub-lineages, with the most common being BA.1, BA.1.1, and BA.2.

The year began with an infectious wave of Omicron’s version of anxiety around the world. It accounts for almost all sequences reported to GISAID. It is an initiative that ensures easy and quick sharing of data from all influenza viruses and the coronavirus caused by COVID-19.

(with inputs from PTI)