Omicron variant may have reached Europe earlier than thought

Manama, Nov. 30 (BNA): Economic powers Japan and France reported their first cases of the omicron variant on Tuesday, while new findings indicate that the mutated coronavirus was already in Europe a week before South Africa sounded the alarm.

The Dutch health institute RIVM revealed that patient samples dating from November 19 and 23 were found to contain the variant. It was last Wednesday, November 24, that the South African authorities reported the presence of the highly mutated virus to the World Health Organization.

An Associated Press report said today that this indicates that omicron has taken a bigger lead in the Netherlands than previously thought.

Combined with cases in Japan and France, the discovery illustrates the difficulty of containing the virus in an era of plane travel and economic globalization.

The world was once again left in disarray between hopes of returning to normal and fears that the worst was yet to come.

Albert Ko, an infectious disease specialist at the Yale School of Public Health, said the pandemic has repeatedly shown that the virus is “transmitted rapidly because of our globalized and interconnected world.”

Until a vaccination campaign reaches every country, Omicron explains, “we’ll be in this situation over and over again.”

Much remains unknown about the new alternative, including whether it is more contagious, as some health authorities suspect, whether it makes people more dangerous, and whether it could thwart a vaccine.

But a World Health Organization official said that given the increasing number of Omicron cases in South Africa and neighboring Botswana, parts of South Africa could see a sharp rise in infections soon.

“There is a possibility that we will actually see a serious doubling or doubling of the number of cases over time or as the week goes by,” said Dr Nixi Gumed Moelitsi, a regional virologist at the World Health Organization.
After a period of low transmission in South Africa, new cases began to increase rapidly in mid-November. The country is now seeing nearly 3,000 new confirmed infections daily.

As of Tuesday, 44 cases of omicron had been reported in 11 EU countries, the EU’s European Center for Disease Prevention and Control said, adding that the majority had a history of travel to Africa. Outside the European Union and South Africa, omicron infections have appeared in places such as Australia, Canada, Britain and Israel.
U.S. disease trackers said Omicron may already be present in the United States and will likely be discovered soon.
“I’m expecting that any day now,” said Scott Baker of the Association of Public Health Laboratories. “We expect it

Here. “

While the variant was first identified by South African researchers, it is unclear where and when it originated – information that could help shed light on how quickly it is spreading.

An announcement from the Netherlands on Tuesday could shape that timeline.
Previously, the Netherlands said it found the alternative among passengers who arrived from South Africa on Friday, the same day the Dutch and other European Union members began imposing flight bans and other restrictions on South Africa. But the newly identified cases precede this.

Dutch public broadcaster Os said that one of the two Omicron samples came from a person who was in South Africa.
Belgium reported the case of a traveler who returned to the country from Egypt on November 11 but did not fall ill with mild symptoms until November 22.

Japan announced a ban on all foreign visitors from Tuesday – the same day the country confirmed the first case of a Namibian diplomat who had recently arrived from his country.

Similarly, France recorded its first case in the territory of Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean. The patient was identified as a man who returned to Reunion from South Africa and Mozambique on November 20, before the WHO learned of the variant.
Several health officials have tried to allay fears, insisting that vaccines remain the best defense and that the world should redouble its efforts to get vaccines to every part of the world.
Emir Kok, head of the European Medicines Agency, said the 27-nation European Union was well prepared for the variant and that the vaccine could be adapted for use against Omicron within three or four months if needed.

England has responded to the emerging threat of making face coverings mandatory again on public transport and in shops, banks and hair salons. A month before Christmas, the head of Britain’s Health Security Agency urged people not to mix with others if they did not need to.
After COVID-19 caused the Summer Games to be postponed by one year, Olympic organizers began to worry about the February Winter Games in Beijing. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Omicron “will certainly bring some challenges in terms of prevention and control.”
Global markets continued to swing every medical news, whether it was worrying or reassuring. Stocks on Wall Street tumbled in the morning after Moderna’s CEO expressed concern about the effectiveness of vaccines against Omicron.
Across the world, stocks mostly fell as investors weighed how much damage the variable could do to the economy.
Some analysts believe a serious economic downturn could be avoided because so many people have been vaccinated. But they also believe that a return to pre-pandemic levels of economic activity, particularly in tourism, has been significantly delayed.

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