WHO Chief Scientist Says Omicron Fuels Reinfection 3 Times More Than Delta Variant, Putting Unvaccinated Children at Risk

Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist at the World Health Organization (WHO), stated on Monday that reinfections in the omicron variation of Covid-19 are three times more prevalent than in the delta variant 90 days after the virus first strikes.

Dr Swaminathan told CNBC-TV18 exclusively that while data on the virulence and transmissibility of variations will take time, scientists now know that omicron is the prevalent strain in South Africa.

“Reinfections are three times as prevalent in omicron than in delta 90 days following infection.” It is still early in the process of deciphering the clinical aspects of omicron infection. There is a lag between an increase in cases and an increase in hospitalizations. “We need to wait two to three weeks to investigate hospitalisation rates to determine how severe this condition is,” she added, adding that “cases with omicron variation are increasing rapidly in South Africa.”

Dr Swaminathan pointed out that not many vaccines are available for children currently and only a handful of countries have started vaccinations for kids and warned at a potential rise in cases due to it.

“Not many vaccines available for children and very few countries vaccinating children. Children and the unvaccinated may get more infections when cases rise. We are still waiting for data to conclude omicron variant’s impact on children,” she said.

“We need to take a comprehensive and science-based approach on vaccination. It is the same virus we are dealing with and hence measures to protect it will be the same. If we need a variant vaccine, it will depends on how much ‘immune escape’ the variant has,” she added.

All countries, she said, must study the vaccine data by age and region to assess those who have been missed and a “priority should be to vaccinate all those aged above 18 years to reduce transmission”.