WHO advises prioritising investigation of new BA.2 Omicron variant

The World Health Organization has advised prioritising the investigation of the new BA.2 Omicron variant.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended that the emphasis be placed on investigating the virulence of the BA.2 version of the omicron variant, which is spreading rapidly across the world and the impact it could have on the evolution of the pandemic is still unknown.
In recent days, the increasingly important presence of the BA.2 sublineage has been observed “which differs from the first in some mutations, including the spike protein.”
Certain scientific sources have indicated that, in a minority of cases, diagnostic tests including PCRs will not detect the genetic sequencing of Omicron, including the BA.2 version – which is why some call it the “stealth variant.”
Spain already has more than 9.2 million cases detected since the start of the pandemic, almost 50 per cent of them during this sixth wave.
The cumulative incidence has dropped by 37 points after the weekend (3,381 cases per 100,000 inhabitants,) but pressure on hospitals persists and those in intensive care has slightly increased (23.9 per cent.)
In addition, the incidence by age group shows that while the general incidence decreases, children under 11 years of age – the group with the lowest vaccination coverage – increases from 4,599 to 5,248. It also increased, but very slightly, for the population aged 12 to 19 (from 4,149 to 4,195) and for those over 80 (from 1,967 to 1,986.)

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