Omicron spreads like wildfire | Preliminary information from around the world suggests that Omicron is significantly more contagious than its Sars-CoV-2 predecessors, but perhaps also less fatal
However, experts warn that it is too early to confirm this because it usually takes a while before Covid-19 patients’ prognosis deteriorates.
Covid-19 is again spreading like wildfire in South Africa. The Omicron variant is already dominant in Gauteng, where 11 533 new cases were reported on Friday night alone, according to statistics from the department of health. With 957 cases, the Western Cape has the second-largest number of new infections.By Friday night, 24.3% of all test results were positive, compared with 9.2% a week earlier. A total of 16 055 new cases were reported, compared with 2 828 last Friday.
According to Jassat, the institute is also monitoring hospital admissions among children younger than five, of whom there are significantly more than there have been during previous infection waves. About 11% of hospital admissions between November 14 and 27 were of children under the age of two, according to the NICD’s statistics.This rise in Covid-19-related hospitalisations of young children may be partly attributable to doctors admitting them as a precautionary measure.
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