The World Health Organization said on Saturday that the omicron version of the coronavirus has been detected in 89 countries, and cases of COVID-19 are doubling every 1.5 to 3 days in places with community transmission, not just abroad. infection in.
The UN health agency said that Omicron’s “substantial growth advantage” over the Delta variant means it will soon overtake Delta as the dominant form of the virus in countries where the new variant is spreading locally.
The WHO noted that omicron is spreading rapidly even in countries with high vaccination rates or where a significant portion of the population has recovered from COVID-19.
The WHO said it was not clear whether the rapid increase in omicron cases is because the variant evades existing immunity, is inherently more transmissible than previous variants, or a combination of both.
Other major questions about Omicron remain unanswered, including how effective each of the current COVID-19 vaccines are against it. The health agency said there is not yet conclusive data on how sick Omicron makes COVID-19 patients.
The WHO first labeled omicron a type of concern on 26 November.
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed.
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