However, that is not translating to overloaded hospital wards. While the number of people hospitalised with Covid-19 is nearing 5,000, that’s about a quarter of its peak in the mid-year third wave.
Most of the early infections with the variant, the discovery of which was announced by SA on November 25, have been in Gauteng. Data from the province has shed some light on the potential severity of disease.
“There are early indications that we haven’t seen dramatic increases in the number of people who need oxygen, ventilators or need to be moved to intensive care units,” Groome said.
“We have also looked at the case fatality rate, or the number of people dying in hospital, and again there is no indication that has been increasing.”
While initial studies show vaccines are less effective against Omicron, most hospital admissions are in age groups with lower vaccine coverage, Groome said.
As many as 68% of coronavirus hospital intakes in the Tshwane municipal area, which includes Pretoria, were under 40, according to NICD data presented on December 3. That compares with individuals older than 50 accounting for 66% of hospitalisation during the early weeks of the third wave.
As Omicron advances, SA sees limited severe disease, small uptick in deaths
Hospitalisations in SA from the Omicron coronavirus variant are rising at a slower rate than surging case numbers, while severe disease is limited and there’s only a small uptick in deaths.
Data presented by government on Friday reinforces theories that while Omicron spreads more rapidly than earlier strains, it exhibits less pathogenicity, or the ability to make people very ill.
Previous waves showed an increase in hospitalisation before a dramatic rise in case numbers, said Michelle Groome, head of health surveillance for the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD).
“We first saw the increase in cases and then started seeing hospitalisation, so early indications are we may be starting to see a disconnect,” she said.
The findings will come as some relief for SA, in which Omicron was first identified, and the world as the mutation spreads to more than 50 countries. Case numbers in SA are nearing a record and the reproduction number, a gauge of how fast a virus spreads, is higher than it has been at any time during the pandemic.
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However, that is not translating to overloaded hospital wards. While the number of people hospitalised with Covid-19 is nearing 5,000, that’s about a quarter of its peak in the mid-year third wave.
Most of the early infections with the variant, the discovery of which was announced by SA on November 25, have been in Gauteng. Data from the province has shed some light on the potential severity of disease.
“There are early indications that we haven’t seen dramatic increases in the number of people who need oxygen, ventilators or need to be moved to intensive care units,” Groome said.
“We have also looked at the case fatality rate, or the number of people dying in hospital, and again there is no indication that has been increasing.”
While initial studies show vaccines are less effective against Omicron, most hospital admissions are in age groups with lower vaccine coverage, Groome said.
As many as 68% of coronavirus hospital intakes in the Tshwane municipal area, which includes Pretoria, were under 40, according to NICD data presented on December 3. That compares with individuals older than 50 accounting for 66% of hospitalisation during the early weeks of the third wave.
SA’s mass vaccination drive only started for those older than 60 in May, before younger categories were added. More older South Africans are vaccinated than younger ones.
The initial rush of Omicron admissions included many children under the age of five, a marked difference from earlier bouts of infection. Children below the age of 12 are not eligible for vaccination in SA.
For now, Groome said, there is little reason for concern.
“Severity among children is being monitored,” she said.
“But, at this stage, anecdotally, most paediatricians are saying children in hospital with Covid-19 were already admitted for other problems and the duration of their stay is short.”
There is no indication of respiratory problems for young children with Covid-19, health minister Joe Phaahla said at the same briefing.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
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