According to the WHO, “for Omicron, we have not had any deaths reported, but it is still early in the clinical course of disease and this may change.”
“While South Africa saw an 82 percent increase in hospital admissions due to COVID-19 (from 502 to 912) during the week 28 November–4 December 2021, it is not yet known the proportion of these with the Omicron variant,” the report noted.
Originally known as B.1.1.529, the variant first made international headlines on Black Friday, Nov. 26, soon after the variant was initially detected in southern Africa.
Two days later, in a technical brief, it said the strain could present a “very high” risk, citing its large number of mutations.
Dr. Angelique Coetzee, the chair of the South African Medical Association and one of the first doctors to treat patients with Omicron, has consistently maintained that Omicron is a mild variant.
By “extreme action,” Dr. Coetzee meant “heavy travel restrictions on flights from across southern Africa, as well as imposing tighter rules at home on mask-wearing, fines and extended quarantines.”
“No one here in South Africa is known to have been [hospitalized] with the Omicron variant, nor is anyone here believed to have fallen seriously ill with it.”
“In the beginning of any wave, children and younger people are the first to be
affected,” she told ThePrint. “As the wave progresses, more elderly, people with comorbidities, start getting affected. When that happens, we will know exactly how many severe cases there are.”