WHO warns against false information over Omicron variant
By Team Newsable | First Published Mar 20, 2022, 11:21 AM IST"There is a great deal of disinformation out there. The myth that Omicron is a mild variant. False information that the epidemic has ended. Misinformation that this is the final variant with which we will have to contend. This is producing a lot of misunderstanding," said Maria Van Kerkhove, Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and COVID-19 Technical Lead.
The World Health Organization issued a warning on Saturday about "huge amounts of disinformation" about the Omicron version of the coronavirus, which is generating a lot of uncertainty. The WHO expressly said that falsehoods such as "Omicron is mild" and "the epidemic is finished" are harmful to the global community.
"There is a great deal of disinformation out there. The myth that Omicron is a mild variant. False information that the epidemic has ended. Misinformation that this is the final variant with which we will have to contend. This is producing a lot of misunderstanding," said Maria Van Kerkhove, Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and COVID-19 Technical Lead.
We have huge amounts of misinformation that's out there. The misinformation that Omicron is mild. Misinformation that the pandemic is over. Misinformation that this is the last variant that we will have to deal with. This is really causing a lot of confusion pic.twitter.com/Ou7vuiV1GD
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Despite a considerable drop in testing, the WHO claimed that the globe had an 8% increase in Covid-19 instances discovered, with more than 11 million recorded, despite a major reduction in testing occurring globally.
Furthermore, 99.9% of sequences reported in the recent 30 days are Omicron. 75 per cent of them are BA.2 and 25 percent are BA.1, according to Kerkhove, who adds that those who have not been tested cannot be sequenced. "All of them are versions of concern," she explained. However, because testing is being curtailed, our capacity to follow Omicron is jeopardised. You can't sequence those you haven't tested!"
Kerkhove emphasised the importance of immunisation, stating that COVID-19 vaccinations are still extremely successful at averting serious sickness and death, even against Omicron.
Meanwhile, the WHO's Executive Director, Dr. Mike Ryan, stated that the Omicron strain will pick up pockets of susceptibility and thrive in those places for months and months until another pocket of susceptibility opens up. "This is how viruses operate. They establish themselves in a community and then move on to the next defenceless neighbourhood "Ryan stated.
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