Geneva:
The Omicron coronavirus variant has been reported in 89 countries and the number of cases is doubling in 1.5 to 3 days in areas of community transmission, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Saturday.
Omicron is spreading rapidly in countries with high population immunity, but it’s unclear whether this is due to the virus’ ability to evade immunity, its inherent increased transmissibility, or a combination of both, the WHO said in an update.
The agency designated Omicron as a variant of concern on Nov. 26, shortly after it was first discovered, and not much is known about it, including the severity of the disease it causes.
“There is still limited data on the clinical severity of Omicron,” the WHO said.
“More data is needed to understand the severity profile and how severity is affected by vaccination and pre-existing immunity.
It added, “There is still limited data available to date and no peer-reviewed evidence on the efficacy or effectiveness of vaccines for Omicron.”
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