Medicine

Most people infected with Omicron don't know about it.

Most of those infected with Omicron don't know about it
Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center found that 56% of people infected with the strain of coronavirus called Omicron simply don't know about it. That contributes to the further spread of the pathogen among people.

More than half of Omicron carriers are unaware they are infected, US scientists have found. Meanwhile, awareness of this issue plays a crucial role in controlling the pandemic. Previous studies have shown that an asymptomatic course of coronavirus can be observed, according to various estimates, in 25-80% of cases. And if a person has no symptoms, he does not do tests and spreads the virus further, then it can be picked up by those for whom the disease will end in the most deplorable way.

The doctor compared the course of the disease in people with “omicron” and “delta”

It is undiagnosed infections that increase the intensity of the spread of the virus, as the authors of the study believe. They've been collecting blood samples from healthcare workers, and this started over two years ago, before the surge caused by the Omicron variant. The researchers were able to expand their database to include new patients. Of all the samples received, 2,479 people were identified who had blood tests immediately before or after the start of the Omicron surge.

In England, 1.4 million people were infected with Omicron in a week

Only 44% of study participants with newly discovered antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 knew they were infected with the virus. 56% did not even know about it. Of those who did not know, only 10% experienced any symptoms at all, but attributed them to the common cold. (READ MORE) Cedars-Sinai

Cedars-Sinai

Medicine

multi-science – Research Academic Medical Center in Los Angeles, USA