'Lack of awareness of Omicron variant': Experts weigh in on recent spike in Covid cases

This strain is infecting people with a good amount of antibodies. This is a matter of concern and therefore, we must revert to Covid19 appropriate behaviours, especially in public places," said Dr Tamorish Kole, president of the Asian Society of Emergency Medicine told ETV Bharat's Gautam Debroy.

New Delhi:Amid an increasing trend of Covid-19 cases in a few states in India, health experts on Saturday expressed concern over a study which says that low rates of Omicron variant infection awareness could be a major contributor to the rapid transmission of the virus within the communities.

"When people have mild symptoms, people tend to ignore them. The recent spike is due to an Omicron subvariant BA 2.75. This strain is infecting people with a good amount of antibodies. This is a matter of concern and therefore, we must revert to Covid19 appropriate behaviours, especially in public places," said Dr Tamorish Kole, president of the Asian Society of Emergency Medicine.

A recent study conducted by the US-based Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) network said that low rates of Omicron variant infection awareness may be a key contributor to the rapid transmission of the virus within the communities.

"Omicron variant is associated with generally less severe symptoms like fatigue, cough, headache, sore throat or a runny nose. This can happen with any other seasonal flu. It is extremely difficult for a person to relate it to a possible Omicron infection. I am not surprised by these findings. However, the relief here is that the infection is mild," said Dr Kole.

He suggested surveillance, testing, tracing, and treating the vulnerable population. "We should also be prepared to deal with another possible surge of Covid19," Dr Kole said. He, however, acknowledged India's Covid19 vaccination drive and said that India's vaccination programme is a robust one. "Keeping the same pace in future is what we need to aim for," he said.

On Friday, the weekly positivity rate stood at 3.90 per cent compared to 4.88 per cent reported last Friday (August 12). As per the health ministry, in the first week of August, 144 districts reported positivity of more than 10 per cent which indicates a potential spread of the virus. Nine districts of Delhi, Gautam Budh Nagar, Kolkata and Pune were among the large urban clusters reporting more than 10 per cent positivity.

The health ministry has expressed serious concern over the spike in active Covid cases in Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, and Punjab. Following the spike in Covid cases, the health ministry has asked all the concerned States to ensure Covid appropriate behaviour in public places.

Talking to this correspondent, Dr RV Ashokan, former secretary general of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) said that the present variant of Covid 19 is not severe. "Another major plus point for India is the fact that the maximum number of people have been vaccinated. And with the starting of a booster dose, the impact of Covid 19 infection will be less," said Dr Ashokan.

He, however, admitted that people have also started taking the infection lightly. "The virus is still there in society. We have to adhere to the Covid 19 behaviour," said Dr Ashokan. India's cumulative Covid19 vaccination coverage exceeds 209.40 crore. Significantly, 3.99 crores of first dose vaccines were administered for the age group 12-14 years.