— Contagion rate remains over 1 percent for third consecutive day
— Study suggests Omicron patients suffered fewer severe symptoms
ISLAMABAD: There was “clear evidence” that Pakistan was staring at the fifth coronavirus wave driven by the Omicron variant, Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar Sunday said.
His statement came as Pakistan on Saturday reported 594 new infections of Covid-19 after conducting 45,585 tests, receiving back a positivity ratio of 1.30 percent.
Statistics 2 Jan 22:
Total Tests in Last 24 Hours: 45,585
Positive Cases: 594
Positivity %: 1.30%
Deaths :8
Patients on Critical Care: 637— NCOC (@OfficialNcoc) January 2, 2022
Pakistan’s daily coronavirus infections have been declining since October. The transmission rate remained less than 1 percent since November 8, leading the government to believe it may not be forced by the pandemic to go for restrictions again.
Pakistan reported its first case of Omicron through genome sequencing on December 13. As of early Saturday, health authorities have detected over five dozen cases of the variant.
But the latest surge in cases apparently driven by the Omicron variant was “clear evidence now of [the] beginning of another Covid wave which has been expected for last few weeks”, Umar tweeted.
Clear evidence now of a beginning of another covid wave which has been expected for last few weeks. Genome sequencing showing rising proportion of omicron cases particularly in karachi. Remember : wearing a mask is your best protection
— Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) January 2, 2022
“Genome sequencing [is] showing [a] rising proportion of Omicron cases particularly in Karachi. Remember: wearing a mask is your best protection.”
In a rapid first response to Omicron, which was first detected in southern Africa and Hong Kong, Pakistan banned the entry of foreigners from a dedicated list of countries — C Category — in December and has imposed 14-day quarantine orders for nationals returning from abroad.
First detected in November, the Omicron variant has now been reported in 57 countries and continues to spread rapidly in South Africa, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.
LESS SEVERE SYMPTOMS
Data is still too limited to know with certainty whether Omicron changes the severity of the illness. However, a new study out of South Africa found that patients hospitalised with the disease during the Omicron wave suffered fewer severe Covid-19 symptoms and were less likely to die.
A breakdown of the numbers showed 74 percent of hospitalised patients needed oxygen therapy during the Delta variant’s wave. Only 17.6 percent needed it during the Omicron wave.
Before Omicron, the median days for staying at a hospital was eight days. Now, that number is down to three.
The death rate dropped from 29.1 percent with Delta to 2.7 percent with Omicron.
On Friday, South Africa lifted a nighttime curfew on people’s movement with immediate effect, believing the country has passed the peak of its fourth coronavirus wave driven by the Omicron variant.
“While the Omicron variant is highly transmissible, there has been lower rates of hospitalisation than in previous waves,” a statement from a special cabinet meeting held on Thursday said.
Meanwhile, the ongoing coronavirus vaccination campaign remained suspended on Sunday for a second day to facilitate staff as was announced by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC).
“All vaccination centres across the country will remain closed on Jan 1 and 2, 2022 (Saturday and Sunday) as vaccination staff remained extensively engaged in achieving national targets for the year 2021,” read a statement issued by the body.
“Vaccination campaign will resume from Jan 3-onwards,” it added.
Overall, according to the forum, 70.5 million people have now been fully vaccinated against the disease, while another 96.98 million are partially vaccinated.
OMICRON ‘INEVITABLE’ IN PAKISTAN
In November, Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar, who also heads the NCOC, warned the Omicron variant will “inevitably” find its way to Pakistan, adding the nation had “only a few weeks” to contain the latest threat.
“The emergence of new variant makes it even more urgent to vaccinate all eligible citizens 12 years and older,” he said.
“It is my appeal to people, particularly those who’ve gotten one dose to get the second dose because this is one effective thing we have to protect ourselves from the danger of this variant,” the minister added.
The alert followed a WHO communiqué warning its 194 member states the variant is likely to spread internationally, posing a “very high” global risk where Covid-19 surges could have “severe consequences” in some areas.
The UN agency urged them to accelerate vaccination of high-priority groups and to “ensure mitigation plans are in place” to maintain essential health services.
“Omicron has an unprecedented number of spike mutations, some of which are concerning for their potential impact on the trajectory of the pandemic,” the WHO said. “The overall global risk related to the new variant of concern Omicron is assessed as very high.”
