London: Sub-Descent of BA.2 omicron Health officials said the version of Covid-19, classified as a variant under investigation in the UK, spreads much faster than the original BA.1 strain, but also showed higher vaccine safety.
The UK Health Protection Agency (UKHSA) stated that the growth rate of BA.2 has increased compared to BA.1 in all areas of England where there are enough cases to assess it. As of 24 January, 1,072 genomically confirmed cases of BA.2 have been identified in England and all assessments remain preliminary while case numbers remain relatively low.
UKHSA said, “While the initial analysis of a new variant may have underestimated the growth rate, the apparent growth benefit is currently substantial.”
Experts said their analysis from regular contact tracing data indicated that transmission among contacts of BA.2 cases in households was around 13.4 per cent higher than contacts of other Omicron cases at 10.3 per cent in the period between December 27. is likely to. , 2021 to January 11, 2022.
A linked preliminary evaluation did not find evidence of a difference in vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease for BA.1 compared to BA. After two doses, after 25+ weeks, the vaccine effectiveness for BA.1 and BA.2 was 9 percent and 13 percent, respectively. This increased to 63 percent for BA.1 and 70 percent for BA.2 at 2 weeks after the third vaccine.
“We now know that BA.2 has an increased rate of growth that can be seen in all regions of England. We have also learned that homes in BA.2 have slightly higher secondary attack rates than BA.1 ,” said UKHSA Chief Medical Adviser Dr Susan Hopkins.
“Although hospitalizations and deaths are down, cases are still high in some regions and certain age groups, so it is important that we continue to act with caution as restrictions are lifted,” she said.
In its latest update on Omicron data, the UKHSA notes that the overall number of intensive care unit (ICU) admissions has decreased over time, but where data was available, admissions with Omicron increased from 9 percent to more than 50 percent. are gone. Recent week.
It also found that although there was a sharp increase in COVID-19 infections among the elderly in care homes during December 2021, consistent with the increase in cases in the community, there has been no increase in hospital admissions.
UKHSA said its findings suggest that the current wave of omicron infections is unlikely to lead to a large-scale increase in serious disease in care home populations with high levels of vaccine coverage and/or natural immunity.
The latest analysis comes at the end of a week where all parts of the UK began to roll back strict COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, such as nightclub restrictions and work from home instructions.
The UK Health Protection Agency (UKHSA) stated that the growth rate of BA.2 has increased compared to BA.1 in all areas of England where there are enough cases to assess it. As of 24 January, 1,072 genomically confirmed cases of BA.2 have been identified in England and all assessments remain preliminary while case numbers remain relatively low.
UKHSA said, “While the initial analysis of a new variant may have underestimated the growth rate, the apparent growth benefit is currently substantial.”
Experts said their analysis from regular contact tracing data indicated that transmission among contacts of BA.2 cases in households was around 13.4 per cent higher than contacts of other Omicron cases at 10.3 per cent in the period between December 27. is likely to. , 2021 to January 11, 2022.
A linked preliminary evaluation did not find evidence of a difference in vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease for BA.1 compared to BA. After two doses, after 25+ weeks, the vaccine effectiveness for BA.1 and BA.2 was 9 percent and 13 percent, respectively. This increased to 63 percent for BA.1 and 70 percent for BA.2 at 2 weeks after the third vaccine.
“We now know that BA.2 has an increased rate of growth that can be seen in all regions of England. We have also learned that homes in BA.2 have slightly higher secondary attack rates than BA.1 ,” said UKHSA Chief Medical Adviser Dr Susan Hopkins.
“Although hospitalizations and deaths are down, cases are still high in some regions and certain age groups, so it is important that we continue to act with caution as restrictions are lifted,” she said.
In its latest update on Omicron data, the UKHSA notes that the overall number of intensive care unit (ICU) admissions has decreased over time, but where data was available, admissions with Omicron increased from 9 percent to more than 50 percent. are gone. Recent week.
It also found that although there was a sharp increase in COVID-19 infections among the elderly in care homes during December 2021, consistent with the increase in cases in the community, there has been no increase in hospital admissions.
UKHSA said its findings suggest that the current wave of omicron infections is unlikely to lead to a large-scale increase in serious disease in care home populations with high levels of vaccine coverage and/or natural immunity.
The latest analysis comes at the end of a week where all parts of the UK began to roll back strict COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, such as nightclub restrictions and work from home instructions.
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